ISSN 1985 - 0522

Trunked Radio Going Digital

SKMM Industry Report 2009

Publication Date: September 2009

Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (SKMM), 2009

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Published by:
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Off Persiaran Multimedia
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http://www.skmm.gov.my

FOREWORD

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

TRUNKED RADIO: A LASTING LEGACY

Trunking Analogy
The Trunking Process
Types of Trunked Radio Users and Applications

5
5
6
7

DEVELOPMENT OF TRUNKED RADIO

Evolution of Trunked Radio From Transmission Systems to
Technology Standards
Transmission Systems
Analogue Trunked Radio Systems
Digital Trunked Radio Systems
The Role of Standards in Trunked Radio
Analogue Trunked Radio Standards
Digital Trunked Radio Standards
Trunked Radio Equipment Analogue and Digital Systems
Signal Quality for Digital Trunked Radio

9
9
9
9
10
11
13
13
14
16

TRUNKED RADIO MARKET: OVERVIEW AND GROWTH

Competition in the Trunked Radio Market
Factors Affecting Trends and Demands for Trunked Radio Services
Worldwide Developments of Trunked Radio Then
North America
Europe/Eurasia
Asia-Pacific
Worldwide Developments of Trunked Radio Now
Findings by VDC Research Group
Findings by EADS
Findings by ABI Research
Global Case Studies
Case Study of a Country: China
Case Study of a Technology Standard: TETRA
Case Study of a Manufacturer: Motorola Inc.
Case Study of a Government Radio Network: Government Radio Network
Services, New South Wales Government, Australia

17
18
18
19
19
19
20
20
20
20
21
21
21
21
22
23

DOMESTIC TRUNKED RADIO MARKET: OVERVIEW AND GROWTH

IN MALAYSIA
Key Players in Malaysia
Government Sector
Commercial Sector
Market Growth
Tariff/Pricing
Access Package Models/Service Business Models
Equipment Cost
Estimated Infrastructure Cost for Digital Trunked Radio
The Issue of Unauthorised Cloning of Trunked Radio

23
23
24
24
25
26
26
27
28
28

ECONOMICS AND FINANCIAL ANALYSIS FOR TRUNKED RADIO

MARKET IN MALAYSIA
Life Expectancy of Trunked Radio Network
Return on Investment (ROI) for Analogue Trunked Radio Service Providers
Technology Maturity Model

29
29
31
33

Company Financials
Source of Financial Accounts
Size of Market by Revenue
Size of Companies
Financial Performance
Summary and Observations
Conclusion Based on Both the Economics and Financial Analysis
BUSINESS MIGRATION MODELS FOR TRUNKED RADIO
SERVICE PROVIDERS
Business Migration Model 1: Companies Consolidate Into a Consortium
Business Migration Model 2: Wholly-owned Subsidiary
Business Migration Model 3: MVNO Model

34
34
34
34
34
35
35

42
42
43
44

MIGRATION PLAN IN MALAYSIA: FROM ANALOGUE TO DIGITAL TRUNKED

RADIO PLATFORM
The 800MHz Trunked Radio Services in Malaysia
Migration Status and Future Plan: 400MHz Frequency Band

46
47

LICENSING REGIME FOR TRUNKED RADIO SERVICE PROVIDERS

IN MALAYSIA

48

46

THE WAY FORWARD FOR TRUNKED RADIO: WHAT WILL THE

FUTURE BRING?
Going Digital
Consolidation of Service Providers
Cross Collaboration and Strategic Partnerships with Manufacturers
and Developers
Case Study on Convergence in a Taxi - The Integration of
Innovativeness and New Applications: Taxi Fleet Management

51

CONCLUSION SUMMARY OF KEY FINDINGS

54

ACRONYMS

55

CONTACT US

56

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FOREWORD
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (SKMM) is working on a
number of special industry research reports planned for the year of 2009 and it is with
both honour and great pleasure, I present to our readers the industry research report
on Trunked Radio Going Digital.
With the existence of the latest mobile communications technologies and the explosive
growth of the GSM and CDMA services worldwide, not much is said or highlighted about
the trunked radio industry and its services today. Though this service is common and
used widely among niche groups of users, some wireless communications users are
generally not aware of its existence.
Hence, this report explores a theme that is not much discussed in the communications
industry around the world today, including Malaysia. The introduction of this report is
an opportune way to create awareness on the developments of the trunked radio
market, including the technologies and services development in this industry of late and
opportunities to move forward.
For readers desiring an understanding of the basics of radio trunking, this report
features a brief overview of the concepts and basic technology involved. There are also
discussions on overall trends and factors affecting the trunked radio industry,
internationally and domestically. The report also offers an overview of economic and
financial analysis, and business migration models of the trunked radio industry in
relation to the Malaysian market.
A comparison is provided between the analogue and digital trunked radio systems
featuring the different standards that have developed, and identifies the advantages
and future plans for migration from analogue to digital.
The analysis in this publication is based on various sources including websites, analyst
and industry reports, marketing and technical publications, and interviews with
industry, technical experts, solutions and service providers. Drawing inputs from
various groups, SKMM would like to thank the contributors for their invaluable insights
towards writing this report.
A soft copy of this report can be obtained from the SKMM website at:
http://www.skmm.gov.my/what_we_do/Research/industry_studies.asp
I hope that this report will provide useful information and perspectives to our readers
for the further development of the communications and multimedia industry in
Malaysia. We look forward to hearing your feedback, which will help us improve our
industry
reports
in
the
future.
Please
send
your
comments
to
[email protected]
Thank you.

En. Mohamed Sharil bin Mohamed Tarmizi

COO/Acting Chairman
Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (SKMM)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The notion of trunking came about in the early 1980s when there was increasing
congestion in the airwaves. It is a concept of providing network access to many clients
by sharing a set of lines or frequency channels instead of providing them individually.
Unlike other common telecommunications services such as mobile cellular, trunked
radio communications are not intended for the general public. It provides
communication channels to a group that has strong community interest with one
another. In terms of spectrum use, trunking is more efficient as it has the ability to
switch between multiple radio channels. This allows less blocking and is able to
accommodate a greater number of users to a number of radio channels. For example,
on a 20-channel conventional system, the number of users served is between 700
1,000 users. In contrast, on a trunked radio system, the same number of channels can
service between 2,000 2,500 users.
Despite the existence of sophisticated communications technology, trunked radio
systems still remain the preferred communications technology for some niche users in
the market. Trunked radio communications systems offer a unique combination of costeffectiveness, reliability and features not offered by other common communications
services. Users of trunked radio systems include organisations with mobile workers that
require person-to-person and person-to-group radio communications to coordinate and
facilitate their operations such as public safety and emergency services, transportation
companies, airports, utility companies, and port authorities. Trunked radio
communications systems applications are diverse for a specialised group of users and
are able to fill the gaps that are not provided by other telecommunications carriers.
Applications include day-to-day operational communications, safety purposes for those
working in isolation or remote areas, emergency and disaster communications, including
security and defence measures.
Over the years, trunked radio has evolved to serve the growing demand for better
technologies offering efficient usage and more services. Efforts on standardisation have
resulted in multiple standards and technologies to also meet the various radio
communications needs in the market. In terms of transmission, trunked radio has
progressed from analogue to digital transmission, albeit at a slow rate although digital is
able to deliver more advantages. At the same time, the innovation for analogue trunked
radio appears to have now reached its maximum.
Although majority of trunked radio systems today still operate in analogue mode, the
demand for better performance and reliable system has shifted the strategic direction of
vendors, service providers and users towards migration to digital systems.
Comparatively, digital trunked radio systems are able to transmit better and offer
consistent voice quality; support integration of data and voice; provide enhanced
encrypted voice; is more spectrum efficient and interoperable; and can support
advanced applications such as GPS. Standards for trunked radio systems have also
evolved. As noted by a manufacturer, Motorola, the availability of standards helps the
development of defined migration path and technological progress for trunked radio
systems. It also ensures multi-vendor interoperability and compatibility. There are two
categories of standards open standards and proprietary standards. In open standards,
the components in an existing system can be easily substituted with that from another
vendor, meaning that end users purchase or replacement parts are not controlled by a
single vendor. An example is the Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA) developed by the
European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI). However, the contrary is true
for users of proprietary standards such as iDEN by Motorola.
The market for trunked radio is relatively small with unique market segmentation. In
fact, it is a niche market with relatively no direct competition from other services.
Though the mobile cellular service may seem to offer similar services, it is nevertheless
designed to meet the needs of the mass market. The cellular mobile service provides

the mass market with one-to-one communication where a mobile unit can connect to
another mobile unit or fixed line through interconnection using the public switched
telephone network (PSTN). With technological developments, trunked radio in recent
years also has the capability to interconnect with the fixed line telephone network and
offers the sending of short messages directly to a handset. This is an overlap to the
mobile cellular service. But, the mobile cellular handset is not designed for that high
level of durability and robustness in contrast to trunked radio handhelds used in
challenging work environment as well as the responsive push-to-talk communications
application.
Despite the small trunked radio market share in telecommunications, market research
firm, Venture Development Corporation (VDC) estimates the global market stands at
about USD8.4 billion in 2008 with an installed base of mobile and portable radios
nearing 20 million units. VDC predicts a continued and consistent growth during the
next several years for the digital trunked radio systems. Further to that, VDCs findings
have also shown that 70% of the system installed remained analogue, but by 2012, the
total installed base of digital system would reach 66%.
In Malaysia, the developments of trunked radio services have reached a stable stage
due to the rapid growth in coverage of mobile cellular services. There are two key
players in the Malaysian market the Government and the commercial sectors, with
their own subscriber segments serving different needs. The Malaysian Government has
set up an integrated digital radio network solely for the use of Government agencies
known as the Government Integrated Radio Network (GIRN) which operates on the
380MHz to 400MHz frequency band. In the commercial sectors, there are four main
consortiums that provide trunked radio services in Malaysia Electcoms Wireless Sdn
Bhd, DTRS Consortium, Hasyon Technologies Sdn Bhd and Segi Maju Consortium. At
present, the majority of the consortiums are operating on 100% analogue system. Only
Electcoms Wireless Sdn Bhd is offering digital trunked radio services while Segi Maju
has done a soft launch of its digital services in May 2009. Compared to other
communications services, the trunked radio subscriber base is low. Today, there are
approximately 50,000 trunked radio subscribers nationwide.
In terms of tariffs and pricing in Malaysia, it is not regulated and service providers are
free to set the price to be attractive and competitive. Findings have shown that most
service providers are charging a flat tariff for the use of trunked radio services and
associated equipment. Charges are also dependent on other factors such as payment
period, quantity, packages subscribed and areas of coverage. The cost of trunked radio
handsets and equipment also varies. In general, the cost of digital trunked radio
handset is much higher than that of the analogue, averaging between RM2,500 to
RM3,500, while the digital trunked radio terminal is priced at about RM6,000. A
schematic estimation on the infrastructure cost to conduct a trial for digital trunked
radio with one site base is about RM230,000.
Additionally, a review of the economics and financial performances of the trunked radio
service providers in Malaysia have shown that while there are a few larger players who
are financially sound with the capabilities to upgrade and migrate to digital, many of the
smaller trunked radio service providers are unable to do so due to lack of resources and
financial capital. Therefore, in order to migrate and rejuvenate their operations, there
are three business migration models options that these analogue trunked radio
providers can implement to ensure continuous operational efficiency in the future
consolidation to form a consortium, forming a wholly-owned subsidiary or operating in
MVNO model-like market, taking into account other considerations and issues too.
Though digital deployment in Malaysia has not been fully implemented, SKMM is
strongly encouraging the migration to digital for better spectrum utilisation. Currently,
all trunked radio system services operating in Malaysia are using the 800MHz frequency
band (806MHz to 821MHz and 851MHz to 866MHz). This frequency band for the

operation of trunked radio systems was first introduced in Malaysia in 1990. However,
the decision from the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) 2000 and 2007
identifies the 800/900MHz band to be allocated for the International Mobile
Telecommunications (IMT) future mobile service. In this case, there is a need to
consider migrating the operations of trunked radio services to the 380/400MHz band in
Malaysia. We also have a complementary set of system technologies operating in the
Malaysian market, such as TETRA, APCO25 and GoTa. This is facilitated from a
regulatory perspective as SKMM adopts a technology neutral environment where the
demand and market forces will determine the technology of choice.
Under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 licensing regime, trunked radio
network service providers were previously classified under the class licence category
where less or minimal regulation is required due to the small and niche market served.
As network service providers are required to migrate from analogue to digital which
provides wider, new applications and can serve a potentially larger market base as
compared to analogue trunked radio, SKMM now requires companies to apply for the
individual licence to continue operations.
Under the individual licence category,
network service providers will have to undergo heavier regulatory supervision in
particular, in providing fair and non discriminatory access and interconnection offerings
for trunk radio applications service providers who will reside on their network operating
under a class applications service licence.
No doubt, at the end of the day, the shift towards digital is inevitable worldwide,
including Malaysia. Hence, in the quest for migration, trunked radio vendors and even
service providers have to ensure that their technical blueprint and commercial roadmap
are ready for the change in moving forward to digital. Service providers should also look
into consolidation as a strategic option in order to collaborate and build a strong
platform to compete and also to develop and support applications that can provide
better solutions to customers. With the spread of cellular wireless creating a more
competitive environment, trunked radio service providers require innovativeness and
new applications to sustain market share and drive the market forward in the future
towards digital. Service providers must review for change in their strategies and build
sustainable business models outside traditional areas. They must also continuously
observe the international scenes, developments and industry demand for an indication
on where the industry is moving towards and adopt or adapt accordingly.
However, creating public awareness on the benefits of trunked radio services will also
remain one of the biggest challenges for service providers. Regulators such as SKMM
will continue to work with various parties involved to improve the local regulatory
environment to enable the industry to grow.

TRUNKED RADIO: A LASTING LEGACY

The past few decades have seen rapid advancement in communications technology. The
industry itself can easily be ranked as one of the most dynamic and fastest growing.
Driving the growth are also factors such as the need for instantaneous and constant
connectivity, and the need for practicality, efficiency, and capacity. Connectivity has
also evolved from one-to-one, one-to-many and any-to-any.
Today, wireless communications using radio
frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum
is widely used as opposed to wired
communications and this includes the twoway radio. As early as 1890s, two-way radio
communications were already available when
Gugliemo Marconi and Alexander Popov
experimented
with
ship-to-shore
communications. Since then, radio technology
plays a major role in communications, with
two-way radio becoming a key tool in all
public, private and business use and this
includes conventional and trunked radio.
Source: Radio Pioneers and Core
Technologies, Federal Communications
Commission

Though conventional radio systems were

previously the main way of communications,
the increasing crowding of radio spectrum
bands have caused the introduction of trunked radio techniques. The central idea of
trunked radio systems also came about with the need to provide communications to be
specialised by large and diverse fields of organisations for various critical purposes.
The trunked radio systems differ from the conventional radio systems. Trunked radios
are much more complex controlled radio systems where the use of a pool of channels is
made available for different groups of users known as talk groups. In contrast,
conventional radio system provides communications between users within a given
geographic coverage area1.
Trunking Analogy
The notion of trunking was developed in the early 1980s when there was an increasing
congestion on the airwaves2. As spectrum is considered a limited resource and costly to
obtain, manufacturers developed trunking systems to optimise the use of available
frequency. It is a concept by which a communications system provides network access
to many clients by sharing a set of lines or frequency channels instead of providing
them individually. This is comparable to the structure of a tree with one trunk and many
branches.
In simple explanation, the operation of a trunked radio system can be likened to the
operation of tellers in a bank. A bank may have four teller windows to serve customers
but there will only be one waiting line for customers in a bank. Customers entering the
bank can proceed immediately to any four available tellers if the bank is not busy and
has no queue. However, if traffic begins to pick up with all teller windows fully utilised,
only one queue is created and customers have to wait in line for the next available
teller to carry out their banking transaction.
Comparatively, conventional radio system operates like lines in a supermarket cashier
counter. Each cashier counter will have its own queue. For example, if there are four

Guide for the Selection of Communication Equipment for Emergency First Responders Volume 1, February 2002,
National Institute of Justice.
2
Airwaves are the medium of radio and television transmission.

cashier counters, there will be four waiting lines and customers are allowed to select
whichever queue they would like to stand in.
Conventional Radio System Versus Trunked Radio System

Concept of Conventional Radio System

(Similar to a queue system in a
supermarket)

Concept of Trunked Radio System

(Similar to a queue system in a bank)

Source: Trunking Radio Explained, Flyed Micro

The Trunking Process

How Trunking Works
A trunked radio system is a computercontrolled
radio
system
and
is
technically
more
complex
than
conventional
radio.
For
instance,
trunked radio allocates 20 or more talk
groups to a particular radio frequency
channel. The radio system computer
assigns a user and the user group to a
frequency when the push-to-talk (PTT)
button is pressed. The radio then sends
a digital message to the system
controller
requesting
a
channel
Source: Introduction to Wireless Communication System, UPM assignment.
http://eng.upm.edu.my/~barirah/KKK4615/notes/lecture1a.pdf

The message contains your identification (ID), talk group, and a request for assignment
of a voice channel. If a channel is available, the system controller sends a message
back to the mobile radio with the channel assignment information and, also broadcasts
a similar message to other radios in the fleet so that they can tune to the designated
channel, if necessary. A voice conversation occurs after the channel assignment process
is completed.
In terms of spectrum used, trunking is more efficient than the conventional system as it
has the ability to switch between multiple radio channels. This allows less congestion
and can accommodate greater number of users to a number of radio channels. An
example would be that a 20-channel conventional system can serve between 700 to
1,000 users. In contrast, on a trunked system, the same number of channels can
service between 2,000 to 2,500 users3.

Introduction to Land Mobile Radio

Types of Trunked Radio Users and Applications

Despite the existence of more sophisticated
mobile communications technology, trunked
radio systems still remain as the preferred
technology for some users in the market as it
offers a unique combination of costeffectiveness, reliability and features that is
not offered by other common communications4
services. Trunked radio is also able to serve a
broad
spectrum
of
users
including
Source: Zenitel
organisations with mostly mobile workers that
require person-to-person and person-to-group radio communications to coordinate and
facilitate their operations.
Both the private and public sectors are amongst user groups of trunked radio systems.
According to Motorola, trunked radio users can be categorised into three distinct groups
Commercial and Light Industrial, Professional/Business Critical and Public
Safety/Mission Critical, each with their own needs and expectations from the systems
and services provided. At one end of the continuum are organisations that require fast,
convenient and low-cost communications over a limited range which meets their needs
quite adequately. These include users who work in a variety of industries such as retail,
hospitality, and property management.
On the opposite end are organisations with mission-critical communications need which
demands high functionality such as top-level reliability, security and vast geographic
coverage, mostly those in the emergency, security and safety services.
In between this two ends of the continuum lies the largest group in the market that
needs to communicate efficiently and cost effectively with their mobile workforce who
travels across large geographic areas. These groups of users include those from the
manufacturing industry, transportation and taxi service providers, petrochemical, public
utilities and mining.
Trunked Radio User Groups and Their Communications Needs
Fast, convenient and low cost
Limited coverage area
Basic applications

Efficient, cost effective, high reliability

Wide coverage area
Advanced applications

Mission-critical, secure, highest-level reliability

Wide coverage area
Advanced applications

COMMUNICATIONS NEEDS / USERS

Agriculture
Retail
Hospitality
Education
Property Management

Rental Agencies
Construction
Private Security
Warehousing

Manufacturing
Airports/Ports
Taxi /Transportation Local Government
Petrochemical
Public Utilities
Mining

Public Transport
Emergency Services

Source: Adapted from Standards for Professional Mobile Radio Making a Business Critical Choice for the Future,
Motorola, 2008

4
Common communications refers to those of wired and wireless means of communications such as the fixed line and
mobile cellular where end users are usually the mass market.

With the development of better technology in trunked radio systems, the number of end
users has increased. The following shows groups of some trunked radio users that are
in existence:

Users
Public Safety
Emergency
Services

and

Transportation

Airports

Utilities

Business and
Industry
Others

Trunked Radio Users

Details
Reliable communications during emergency situation is critical for public
safety and emergency service providers such as police, fire departments
and ambulance services. Trunked radio is able to support these users as
it offers reliability and support multiple, instant group calls.
Rail, bus, trucks and fleet management companies use trunked radios
for their communications and tracking needs. Workers in this market
segment are always on the move and by using trunked radio,
organisations can coordinate their operations effectively.
An airport has a unique environment with numerous groups of mobile
workers who must work cooperatively to carry out the airport functions.
Trunked radios are an ideal communications platform in this situation as
public cellular systems are insufficient to support airport use due to
unreliable coverage during busy times and lack of functionality such as
group call. Usually airports function on private trunk radio network for
their internal use.
Utility companies and their maintenance crew usually use trunked radio
communications as their field workers are mobile and out on the move
coordinating maintenance work and remote monitoring.
Local government, municipal councils, public work companies, security
firms and service/maintenance companies are some of the users for
trunked radio systems.
Other users of trunked radios include agricultural industry, forestry, port
authorities that use trunked radio to support their daily operations.

Source: PMR Market Appendix, Digital Project Report by Radiocommunications Agency, 2002

Today, the applications of trunked radios are quite diverse. The table below summarises
some of the use of trunked radio.

Applications
Operational
communications

Safety

Emergency and
disaster
communications

Security

Trunked Radio Applications

Details
Most trunked radio users use their systems to:
manage their business operations like coordinating the activities of
employees and supervisors, e.g. loggers, field workers, taxi drivers, and
public safety and service personnel
communicate information and coordinate a variety of day-to-day as well
as emergency activities
Example, trunked radios are used extensively in transportation of raw
materials and finished products. Companies use radio to coordinate delivery
of products and to dispatch drivers for pickups. This enhances efficiency and
ensures timely delivery of products.
Some personnel often work in isolation or remote areas and work itself can
be potentially hazardous (e.g. loggers and oil riggers). Trunked radio
provides an important connection in case of emergency. In addition,
trunked radios are often used in large scale emergencies, such as flood and
earthquake where all other means of common communications are
impossible such as fixed line.
Trunked radios are critical tools for emergency responses and are used for
immediate communications during repair, rescue and disaster-relief efforts.
Immediate communications are vital to save lives, protect property, and
coordinate relief efforts as common commercial communications services
may be damaged or too congested to be used. For example, air rescue
personnel must be able to quickly coordinate its personnel and equipment
to respond to emergency landings at areas of incident.
Many companies have internal security measures that include security
officers that protect the property and screen visitors. Here, security officers

are equipped with radio communications to dispatch emergency response

personnel when in need such as in the case of fire, intrusions and other
emergencies. For example, airports require tight security to safeguard its
large surrounding area. To monitor the area and communicate with one
another, trunked radios help airport workers carry out security function
effectively.
Source: Private Land Mobile Radio Services: Background by Federal Communications Commission, 18
December 1996

DEVELOPMENT OF TRUNKED RADIO

Evolution of Trunked Radio From Transmission Systems to Technology
Standards
Since the first introduction of two-way radio communications systems, trunked radio
has undergone a lot of changes over time to serve the growing demand for better
technologies and greater usage. Efforts on standardisation have resulted in the creation
of multiple standards and technologies to meet the needs of various radio
communications in the market.
Transmission Systems
Today, trunked radio has evolved from analogue to digital transmission due to more
advantages from digital technology. This is similar in concept to the transition of digital
technology in broadcasting where digital broadcast offers many benefits over traditional
broadcast using analogue systems, especially in highly efficient usage of spectrum.
Analogue Trunked Radio Systems
Commercial trunked radio industry has existed in Asia-Pacific since 1982 with New
Zealand5 being the first country to have the system in operation. As analogue systems
were always used as the key platform for trunked radio communications and have been
around for a long time, the innovation for analogue trunked radio has now reached its
maximum.
Basically, analogue radios transmit analogue signals over-the-air where radio waves6
that are usually modulated by a voice are continuously broadcast. At the same time,
there is no additional computer processing (e.g., digitisation) for analogue radio. A
traditional two-way radio with an analogue signal is also not feature-rich. Standard
analogue radios usually offer push-to-talk, scanning, simple group conversations (oneto-many), and limited encryption capabilities.
A typical analogue trunked radio system is shown below. Trunking controllers are
allocated on a per channel basis (for example, five channels shown in the diagram
below) and then linked to the radio system on a channel for channel basis. The output
of the radio system is then combined and transmitted to the antenna.

5
6

Introduction to Land Mobile Radio Public and Private Land Mobile Radio Telephone and System, 4 December 2000
Radio waves are electromagnetic waves occurring on the radio frequency portion of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Analogue Trunked Radio System

Source: Application Note Analogue Trunking by Daniels Electronics Ltd., February 2007

Common analogue trunked radio systems include: Motorola Type I, Motorola Type II,
Motorola Type I/II hybrid, General Electric EDACS, and EF Johnson Logic Trunked Radio
(LTR) systems7.
While analogue systems are very cost-effective in areas outside major population
centres, with easy-to-use dispatch features and low-cost service today, it is not as
efficient in its use of spectrum as digital.
Digital Trunked Radio Systems
Although the majority of global trunked radio
systems users today still operates in analogue,
the increasing demand for better performance
and reliable system has shifted the direction
for vendors, service providers, and users to
move from analogue systems to digital
trunked radio systems. Unlike analogue
systems,
data
and
voice
conversation
transmitted
using
digital
systems
are
encrypted and converted into digital format
Source: Zenitel

before it is transmitted over-the-air. The radio

signal is converted into binary code using
electronic or electromagnetic signals. The
binary code is then decoded by mathematical
algorithms in the receiving radio so that the
user at the end point can understand the
information conveyed on the assigned working
channel. When the transmission is completed,
the assigned working channel will be released
and is then available for another transmission.

Source: Zenitel

Trunked Radio Systems, Radio Scanner Guide, http://radio-scanner-guide.com/RadioScannerGuidePart3A-Trunked.htm

10

Since transmission of conversation can be sent through different working channels, it is

difficult for any unauthorised listener to eavesdrop the conversation. Digital systems
offer users enhanced signalling options, more consistent audio quality, higher radio
spectrum efficiency, fast Internet connection and wider range of encryption features.
Some of the general characteristics comparison is shown in the table below:
General Comparison between Analogue and Digital Trunked Radio Systems
Analogue Trunked Radio Systems
Voice quality decreases gradually and
noise level increases when users
move far away from the analogue
transmission site.
Less functionality and features can be
embedded in analogue systems.

Less secure since analogue systems

do not have full encryption feature.
No
software-driven
business
applications can be supported by this
system.
Analogue devices can be upgraded
but will not be capable to cope with
advancing technology.
Maintenance costs are high.

Digital Trunked Radio Systems

Better and consistent voice quality as it can reduce
environmental
noise
levels
during
transmission.
Background
noises
with no recognisable voice
characteristics are not usually encoded.
Because voice transmissions are treated as data, digital
systems can support improved integration of data and
voice. The latter is one of the gripping reasons why
users and service providers are migrating from analogue
to digital systems.
Enhanced encrypted voice quality. Encryption prevents
any voice or data transmitted from interception by
unwanted listeners.
Better compression makes digital system more
spectrum-efficient to support advanced applications such
as GPS location and high speed messages.
Interoperability among neighbouring systems. Digital
platform provides a migration path that allows for use of
both digital and analogue radios. Digital systems also
provide Internet connectivity.
Lower total cost of ownership.

Source: www.BearCom.com, www.about2wayradio.com, TETRA Association, The Future of Professional

Two-Way Radio: Digital and various websites

The Digital Advantage Summary

Source: TETRA Experience 2006

The Role of Standards in Trunked Radio

Standards provide a platform for evolution and development of trunked radio as there is
clearly define technological progress towards specific industry-shared goals. The
absence of standards will lead to the development and production of equipment which
are incompatible with other systems; produced by different manufacturers and vendors.
According to Motorola, the goal of standards is to aid the development of defined
migration paths and documented upgrades to the technology. Standards bodies usually
collaborate to develop a timeline for feature introductions due to regulatory mandates,
while balancing value proposition to users. At the same time, standards help ensure a
robust, realistic and cost-effective future progression for the defined technology.

11

Standards also ensure multi-vendor interoperability and compatibility. When standards

on interoperability are developed, it ensures greater sustainability of technology
solutions over time, thus decreasing risk of obsolescence and increased cost savings.
Such standards also allow users to have access to multi-vendor alternatives for
technology and equipment adoption or replacement.
Although there are several international standards developed for trunked radios
worldwide, there is no universal standard with global appeal. The industry carries a
mixture of standards by manufacturers in collaboration with associations and agencies.
Generally, there are two categories of standards for trunked radio systems as
summarised in the table below:

Standards
Open
standards

Proprietary
standards

Standards for Trunked Radio Systems

Details
Examples
Open standards are also known as open Terrestrial
Trunked
Radio
system. According to ITU, open standards
(TETRA) developed
by the
are standards that are made available to
European
Telecommunications
the general public and are developed (or
Standards Institute (ETSI)
approved) and maintained through a
collaborative and consensus-driven process. APCO-25
or
Project
25,
Open Standards facilitate interoperability
developed through a joint effort
and data exchange among different
of the Association of Publicproducts or services and are intended for
Safety Communication Officials
widespread adoption.
International
(APCO),
the
National Association of State
Using open standards also means that the
Telecommunications
Directors
component in an existing system can be
(NASTD),
some
Federal
easily substituted with that from another
Agencies
and
the
National
vendor. Hence, an open standard is not
Communication System (NCS)
controlled by a single vendor. With open
and was standardised under
standards, equipment often benefit from
Telecommunications
Industry
price and performance advantages arising
Associations (TIA), USA.
from multi-vendor competition.
Proprietary standards are standards that
are developed and controlled by one or a
closed group of companies and do operate
in the same band as existing system. Such
standards can also be advantageous as
they will speed up the development and
roll-out of new equipment into the market.
Each equipment specification will follow the
proprietary standard.
On the other hand, the adoption of such
standards will lead to technology lock-in.
Adopters of the standard can only source
equipment from usually one vendor that
develops it.

Integrated
Digital
Enhanced
Network (iDEN) developed by
Motorola that uses Time Division
Multiple Access (TDMA)
Enhanced
Digital
Access
Communication
System
(EDACS)
by
Ericsson
Inc.
(initially invented by General
Corporation before being taken
over by Ericsson Inc)
Global
Open
Architecture
Trunking (GoTa) developed by
ZTE Corporation, China*

*GoTa is a CDMA-based trunking system. Currently, the only company that manufactures the GoTa
system is ZTE Corporation in China.
Source: Digital Trunked Land Mobile in the 800MHz Band An Engineering Discussion Paper by Radio
Spectrum Policy and Planning Group, Energy and Communications Branch, Ministry of Economic
Development, New Zealand, May 2007 and other various websites.

12

Analogue Trunked Radio Standards

The first trunked radio standard introduced was the analogue MPT 1327 from Rohde
and Schwarz. At present, analogue trunked radio systems rely on a few standards such
as the following:
Analogue Standards of Trunked Radio Systems
Analogue Standards
Summary of Standards
APCO 16
Developed
by
the
Association
of
Public
Safety
(Association
of
Public
Communication Officials International in 1979
Safety
Communications APCO-16 products follow 25 or 30 KHz radio channel
Officials Project 16)
utilisation
Examples of products complying with the standard are
SmartNet and SmartZone trunked system developed by
Motorola
MPT1327
(Ministry
of
Post and Telegraph 1327)

LTR
(Logic
Radio)

Trunked

Developed by the British Department of Trade and Industry

in 1988
Used primarily in countries like UK, Europe, South Africa and
Australia
MPT1327 utilises Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA)
technique to utilise spectrum
Developed by E.F. Johnson Company 1978
LTR utilises Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA)
technique to utilise spectrum on 25 KHz bandwidths
It is distinguished from other common trunked radio systems
by not having a dedicated control channel.

Source: Understanding Two Way Radio Technology, http://about2wayradio.com/index.htm and other

various websites.

Digital Trunked Radio Standards

The move towards digital trunked radio systems over the last few years, together with
digital standards, has increased acceptance leading to the accelerating trend of
migrating to digital. Vendors and service providers are now more willing to move from
their legacy systems in order to stay ahead or still be in the business of trunking
communications services.
Proprietary system standards are giving way to open standards as well. Previously,
most trunked radio systems relied very much on proprietary standards containing
software licensed exclusively to a manufacturer. For most part, relying on proprietary
standards would make interoperability between radio systems very complex if not
impossible. This is due to the usage of different trunking technologies, with different
brands of hardware and software. TETRA and APCO-25 are examples of open standards
and iDEN is one of the models for proprietary standard. As more standards are
developed to be an open standard, compatibility and interoperability issues are no
longer a major crisis.
There are few standards which can support digital trunking systems. However, in this
report, only TETRA, APCO-25, iDEN, GoTa and DMR are discussed briefly.
Digital Standards for Trunked Radio Systems
Digital Standards
Summary of Standards
TETRA
(Terrestrial Developed by European Telecommunications Standards
Trunked Radio)
Institute (ETSI) in 1995
TETRA is based on 4-slot Time Division Multiple Access
(TDMA)on 25kHz bandwidth
TETRA Release 2 standards
was released in 2005, an
upgrade version of TETRA release 1

13

APCO 25
(Association
of
Public
Safety
Communications
Officials Project 25)

iDEN (Integrated Digital

Enhanced Network)

GoTA
(Global
Open
Trunking Architecture)

Developed
by
the
Association
of
Public
Safety
Communication Officials International (APCO), the National
Association of State Telecommunications Directors (NASTD),
some Federal Agencies and the National Communication
System (NCS)
APCO-25 operates on Frequency Division Multiple Access
(FDMA) on 12.5 kHz and/or 25kHz bandwidth
Developed by Motorola in 1994
Provides users the advantage of a trunked system and
cellular-like services integrating voice and data and uses a
SIM card just like GSM-based phones
iDEN operates on TDM technologies for multiple access
operating in 800MHz
Developed by ZTE Corporation
GoTA operates on CDMA technologies and allows deployment

Source: TETRA Association (www.tetramou.com), P25 Radio Systems Training Guide (www.danelec.com)
Motorola Worldwide iDEN MD (www.idenphones.motorola.com), ZTE GoTA (www.zte.com.cn),
Understanding Two Way Radio Technology (http://about2wayradio.com/index.htm) and other various
websites.

As the digital trunked radio system market shows bright prospect, the trunking
equipment providers, network carriers, and terminal users consistently ride on this new
wave of transformation so that their existing business model is still applicable. Aligned
with the global movement towards digitalisation in this sector, Malaysia is not left
behind. SKMM has been strategising a smooth migration plan from analogue to digital
system in the local scene over requisite timeline.
Trunked Radio Equipment Analogue and Digital Systems
In order to create radio trunking communications, there are some components of
equipment needed to make the connection. Currently, we are now witnessing the fast
growth of radio trunking equipment manufacturers around the world, resulting in an
increase in applicable equipment today. With the advancement of technology,
equipment for radio trunking has improved tremendously including the availability of
digital systems.
In this report, the trunked radio system equipment explained includes base
stations/repeaters, mobile radio, portable radio, controller and other accessories used,
and brief description of their function.
Some of the equipment used in the analogue and digital systems are:
BASE STATION / REPEATER
ANALOGUE

Base Station is also known as a fixed station,

comprising a receiver and a transmitter. The radio is
powered by an external electrical system connected to
the antenna. Due to this, the base station has the most
powerful transmitters compared to mobile and portable
radios,
including
the
most
sensitive
receivers.
Microphones can be handheld or desktop models and the
speaker can be an external or internal type.

DIGITAL

Repeater refers to a transceiver that receives and retransmits signals. The key purpose of repeaters is to
extend communications coverage for portable, mobile
and base stations. The signal received is rebroadcast to
the radio network, often with a higher power and from a
better location. Nowadays, the term base station and
repeater are usually mixed to refer to a network

14

component that provides RF coverage.

MOBILE RADIO
ANALOGUE
This device is typically installed in a vehicle or a car. The
size and weight of the mobile radio is larger and heavier
than a portable radio. This is of no matter to the user
because the mobile radio is fixed in the vehicle.
Generally, mobile radio has higher power output than
portable radio due to its form factor which facilitates
more components to produce higher power. There is no
issue on battery life as it uses the vehicle battery for
power. Thus, the range of a mobile radio is usually
superior to portable radio.

DIGITAL

ANALOGUE

DIGITAL

PORTABLE RADIO
Portable radios are small and lightweight handheld
wireless devices that contain a microphone and speaker,
rechargeable battery for power supply and an antenna.
Since users carry this device most of the time, the
ergonomics of portable radio (that is, its size and weight)
is an important factor for users.
Portable radios regularly have lower power output
compared to mobile or fixed-station radio due to the
above limitation factors. Thus, the range of portable radio
is typically smaller than mobile or fixed-station radio.
CONTROLLER
This is a network component that manages the entire
network. The switching system, for example, manages
the incoming and outgoing traffic and routes the
communications to and from base stations. The switching
system is the kernel of the network as without it the
network will not be able to handle wide area network
calls.

Note: All products mentioned above are from EFJohnson, TAIT Communication, Zetron, Sepura, and
Motorola iDEN.
Source: Guide for the Selection of Communication Equipment for Emergency First Responders Volume 1,
February 2002, National Institute of Justice

15

Signal Quality for Digital Trunked Radio

For any communications, signal quality is an important aspect as it ensures reliable
communications transmission. In trunked radio, it is essential to have good signal audio
quality especially during critical incidents as safety personnel frequently depend solely
on trunked radio communications to effectively relay information and coordinate
emergency situations. However, the presence of other noise interference in the
surrounding environment such as wind, traffic, sirens and large crowd noises is
inevitable. In digital trunked radio, the signal quality or more often known as Delivered
Audio Quality (DAQ) is often rated between 1 to 5 as shown in the table below:
Trunked Radio Audio Quality
Delivered Audio Quality (DAQ)
Details
Rates
DAQ 1
Unusable. Speech present but not understandable
DAQ 2
Speech understandable with considerable effort.
Requires frequent repetition due to noise/distortion
DAQ 3
Speech understandable with slight effort. Requires
occasional repetition due to noise/distortion
DAQ 3.4
Speech understandable without repetition. Some
noise/distortion present
DAQ 4
Speech easily understood. Occasional noise/distortion
present
DAQ 5
Speech easily understood. No noise/distortion present
Source: Commentary on Public Safety Technology and other things by Daryl Jones, 11 May 2008

For most digital trunked radio system, a minimum Delivered Audio Quality of 3.4 is
required, where speech is understandable without repetition, with some noise or
distortion present. As a comparison, digital trunked radio will provide clearer voice
communications over a greater range than comparable analogue trunked radios,
rejecting static and noise8.
Analogue versus Digital Trunked Radio Audio Quality
ANALOGUE

DIGITAL
4.0 DAQ
Audio
Quality

Area of Improved
Performance

3.4 DAQ

Source: Adapted from Hear the Difference Motorola Website, http://ap1.motorola.com/mototrbo/hear-thedifference.html

As radio users move further away from the transmitting radio, the signal strength
decreases and this will directly affect the ability of the radio to produce intelligible
sound.

Hear the Difference, Motorola website, http://ap1.motorola.com/mototrbo/hear-the-difference.html

16

For an analogue system, the clarity and intelligibility of the transmission received by the
users will decrease directly as the signal level decreases. Contrary to this, while the
desired signal decreases, the noise or static in the signal progressively increases with
strength until the users voice cannot be heard over the noise. In a digital system, the
transmitted signal decreases just as an analogue system, as signal level decreases.
However, the error correction in the digital transmission that contains extra
information, allows audio information to be heard even with a large decrease in signal
level.
In summary therefore, the digital trunked radio system offers benefits over the
analogue system in many aspects from the potential to ride on new technology wave to
enhance existing business models into time for service providers to greater and more
reliable services offered to end users. Nevertheless as a market segment, the trunked
radio market is relatively small compared to the cellular mobile phone market.
TRUNKED RADIO MARKET: OVERVIEW AND GROWTH
The cellular based GSM and CDMA services have grown phenomenally worldwide, while
the trunked radio services, which started the very concept of being connected on the
move, go almost unnoticed. Today, trunked radio services still supply the much needed
communications support for critical and specialised services in unique niche markets.
Noteworthy is that the transition to digital has caught the still analogue system service
providers in a time space fix where they need to invest more before the competition
catches up with them. Additionally, the small market size, limited resources amidst
more demanding end users are making it difficult for service providers to create a
bigger market for themselves and to modernise their system in sync.
As it is a push market in this industry, it is observed that it will take a longer time for
customers or end users to approach service providers for this service as compared to
other commercial communications services. On the marketing front, cellular service
providers are aggressively marketing their services to the masses, while radio trunking
service providers tend to spend significantly less on marketing campaigns. This does
lend to some disparity in an increasingly digitising environment then for customers to
inform the service providers what they need so that service providers can cater to
customer needs.
To some extent, this slows down the development of digital
applications features going forward, especially those localised to a particular user group
or user geographic region where end user awareness on the benefits of the switch to
digital is lacking.
Interestingly, as of today, there has also not been a universal name to label this
industry. In different countries, trunked radio is assigned a different term or name as
shown in the table below. However, no matter what name is used, all fall within what is
generally referred to as trunked radio.

Country
United States
Asia
United Kingdom
Europe
India
Japan

Different Terms for Trunked Radio

Term
Specialised Mobile Radio (SMR) or Land Mobile Radio (LMR)
Trunked Radio Service (TRS)
Private Mobile Radio (PMR)
Public Access Mobile Radio (PAMR)
Public Mobile Radio Trunking Service (PMRTS)
Multi Channel Access System (MACS)

Source: Consultation Paper on Licensing Issues Relating to Public Mobile Radio Trunking Service Providers,
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, 25 August 2000

17

Competition in the Trunked Radio Market

As trunked radio offers services to a unique and specific set of industry segments that
require one-to-many and one-to-one communications, there is relatively no direct
competition from other wireless communications services. Mobile cellular services may
seem to offer similar services but is considered not yet a direct competitor as the
cellular mobile phone does not provide similar capabilities and is designed to meet the
needs of a different end-user group the mass market. Unlike trunked radio services,
the cellular mobile provides the mass market with one-to-one communications whereby
a mobile unit can call another mobile unit or a fixed line through interconnection with
public switched telephone network (PSTN).
With technological developments in trunked radio in recent years, the availability to
interconnect to PSTN is also available. Additionally, coupled with the ability to send
short messages directly to a handset, there is now some overlap with the mobile
cellular services. However, in terms of equipment design, the mobile cellular is not
designed to the extent of robustness that trunked radios offer which is an important
factor for end users who are operating in challenging work environment. Hence, the
trunked radio market is still much more of a niche market where competition is limited.
Factors Affecting the Trends and Demands for Trunked Radio Services
As the market for trunked radio grows, findings have shown that there are a few factors
affecting the trends and demand for trunked radio services. This is summarised in the
table below:

Needs

Factors Affecting the Trends and Demands for Trunked Radio Services
The need for communications services by users is increasing dramatically and
driven primarily by changes in demography and increasing population. However,
the demand for trunked radio services is affected by the needs of its users. When
common commercial communications services such as cellular mobile are not able
to meet the demands of users, the trunked radio services are able to fill this gap.

Technology

For example, though common mobile cellular services and equipment are able to
provide majority of the needs of users in the marketplace, it is not able to do so
for the needs of the public safety communications markets like the fire fighters.
In many instances, fire fighters operate in extreme environments, markedly
different from common communications users - operate lying on the floor, in zero
visibility, high heat, high moisture and wearing self-contained breathing
apparatus face pieces that distort voices. This is further challenged by their bulky
protective clothing that eliminates manual dexterity. They also operate inside
structures of varying sizes and construction types. All these factors are to be
considered in order to communicate in a safe and effective manner. Hence,
trunked radio equipment will provide a better communications tool, offering
durability in a harsh environment, with better performance and coverage.
The need to use spectrum more efficiently and advances in technology are factors
that will affect the trends and future demands of trunked radio. As spectrum is a
finite resource, radio trunking systems were developed because of its dynamism
to optimise channel usage and improve spectral efficiency. Trunking of groups of
radio channels allows operation at a much higher loading level than single
channels can handle with acceptable access delay9. Hence, trunking remains the
preferred technology especially in public safety agencies as the system provides
better control over the network during emergency situations - avoiding
congestion which will usually occur over a common cellular network.
Additionally, transformation of technology such as digitisation of information and
the quickening pace of digital communications systems have also shaped the
demands of trunked radio services and systems. The switch to digital promises
greater capacity and more efficient transmission including better security and
voice quality. Digital transmission has also paved the way for convergence of
voice and data networks. The seamless integration of such networks allows

Comparisons of Conventional and Trunked Systems, Public Safety Wireless Network, May 1999

18

efficient interconnection capabilities.

Regulatory

However, there are also difficulties arising in the transition to using new
technologies. Users and service providers would have to take into account factors
in terms of cost and availability of equipment.
The changes in regulatory landscape also affect the trends and demands in
trunked radio services. For example, over the years, Asia has had many
regulatory successes that have created a more positive environment for the
industry. Many regulators are responding to industry needs and have lifted many
restrictions in order for this industry to develop further. These include countries
like India and Japan where regulators have made it easier for service providers to
offer trunked radio services and increase the demand. For instance, in India,
operators can now get a tax break for five years10. Regulatory changes such as
spectrum refarming seeking to increase the capacity and efficiency of trunked
radio services have an impact in changing the trend for radio trunking.

Source: Private Land Mobile Radio Service: Background by Federal Communications Commission, Wireless
Telecommunications Bureau, 18 December 1996. PMR Market by Radiocommunications Agency, November
2002

Worldwide Developments of Trunked Radio Then

The largest markets in the world for trunked radio are in United States (US), Canada,
United Kingdom (UK), Japan and China. However, there are also subscribers found in
countries like Australia, Argentina, Brazil, France, South Korea, India and Malaysia.
Between 1994 and 1998, the International Mobile Telecommunications Association
(IMTA) research indicated worldwide commercial trunked radio market grew by
approximately 4.5 million units. At the end of 1997, it was estimated that there were
at least 55 countries with commercial trunked radio systems in place. This includes
Europe, Latin America and Asia-Pacific region, serving an estimated 6.8 million users.
In 1998, IMTA estimates that 3.4 million of the 8.6 million subscribers were of digital
units. Whereas Asia-Pacific region represents the largest regional commercial trunked
radio market with more than 4.04 million units in service at the end of 1998. By 2001,
a study by a research company, IMS Research, estimated that the number of
Private/Professional/Personal Mobile Radio (PMR) users worldwide was 33.1 million with
US capturing 57% of the market share, followed by Asia at 22%, Europe at 19% and
Middle East and Africa, 2%. However, approximately 77% of the users relied on
analogue systems with the balance 23% using digital technologies.
North America
In North America, the first country to introduce the commercial trunked radio industry
was US in 1974, followed by the launch of the first commercial trunked radio network in
1977. A decade later, there were approximately 3,000 service providers with 628,000
units in service and by the end of 1997, the number of subscribers exceeded 2.68
million. However, in other North American countries like Mexico and Canada,
commercial trunked radio industry took place much later in the 1980s. Like Canada, the
industry became active in 1984. In Mexico, there were 45 companies operating
commercial trunked radio systems with an estimation of 73,000 units in service. 11
Europe/Eurasia
The introduction of trunked radio services in European and Eurasian countries began in
late 1980s and early 1990s, respectively. In UK, the first system was introduced in
1987, and in 1990, France issued its first commercial trunked radio licence. In 1992, it
is reported that there were about 100,000 commercial trunked subscribers in Europe
and the number grew to 5,567,000 in 1997. By 2000, there were more than 175
companies operating commercial trunked radio systems in Belarus, Belgium, Czech
Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland,

10

Asia Trunking Operators Report Regulatory Successes, http://www.itu.int/itunews/issue/1999/07/perspect.html, 1999

Public and Private Land Mobile Radio Telephones and Systems by Lawrence Harte, Alan Shark, Robyn Shalhoub, and
Tom Steiner

11

19

Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Tajikistan, Turkey, Ukraine and UK. The
biggest markets are in France, Germany and UK.
Asia-Pacific
Commercial trunked radio services were also introduced in Asia-Pacific during the early
1980s. The first system was implemented in New Zealand in 1982, followed soon
thereafter by countries like Japan and Australia. For example, in Japan, the trunked
radio system or known as Multi Channel Access System started in 1982. The service
was provided in Tokyo district using the 800MHz band. However, despite its success as
one of the largest markets for commercial trunked radio in the world, service providers
have faced numerous regulatory challenges. However, over the years, by working with
the then Japan Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications (now known as the Ministry of
Internal Affairs and Communications), many of the challenges have been removed. In
Korea, the first company to initiate the trunked radio system was Korea TRS in 1988. In
India, trunked radio service or better known as Public Mobile Radio Trunked Service
(PMRTS) was opened to the private sector in the year 1995. As of 31 March 2007,
PMRTS was provided by 12 service providers. Its subscriber base increased from 29,950
at the end of March 2006 to 31,501 at the end of March 2007.
Worldwide Developments of Trunked Radio Now
Findings by VDC Research Group
Market research firm, Venture Development Corporation (VDC) estimates that the
global market for PMR solutions hardware, software and services is at about USD8.4
billion in 2008 with an installed base of mobile and portable radios close to 20 million
units. Although the market has clearly matured over the years, VDC predicts a
continued and consistent growth for the PMR solutions during the next several years,
much of which will be replacement sales as users migrate to next-generation
platforms12. VDC expects the market is to reach USD11.3 billion by 2012.
VDC also recently conducted research among more than 650 current and future global
PMR users. Respondents from all of the major geographic markets predicted a strong
shift to digital technology during the next five years. Findings showed that about 70%
of the current installed base of PMR radios remained analogue. Further to that, VDC
also indicates that by 2012, the totalled installed base of digital PMR radios should
reach 66%, with transition taking longer than expected, largely due to the factor of the
long shelf life and replacement cycle of PMR solution and the lack of clear investment
drivers.
Findings by EADS13
Meanwhile, EADS reported that the total global PMR market size is estimated at about
five billion Euros, most of which comes from digital PMR systems and terminals, and
command and control systems. Over the next five years, the market is expected to
grow by 20% with continuous, steady growth in digital PMR systems and terminals, and
an increase in the relative share of applications and services14.

12

Article from RadioResource International - Data Applications Could Drive Digital Shift, Venture Development
Corporation
13
EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defence and related services and is the only company in the world that can offer
mission critical network solutions based on TETRA, TETRAPOL and P25 technologies.
14
Global PMR market reaches five billion Euros, Key Touch Customer Newsletter 2008 by EADS.

20

Findings by ABI Research

According to ABI Research, the market for terminals used by emergency first
responders15 looks set to grow significantly over the next five years. The market is
expected to grow slightly from USD1 billion in 2007 to more than USD3.6 billion in 2013
as agencies such as the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials
International (APCO)/Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) Project 25 (P25)
and European Telecommunications Standardisation Institute (ETSI) Terrestrial Trunked
Radio (TETRA) standardise on digital technologies16.
Global Case Studies
Case studies below are some examples that indicate the growth of trunked radio
worldwide.
Case Study of a Country: China
China is one of the worlds largest manufacturers for two-way radios. Findings have
shown that China itself produces 11 million two-way radios in 2006. For China, its
market for handheld two-way radios has reached a mature stage with active makers
producing a capacity between 20,000 to 30,000 handheld two-way radios. The average
monthly output is about 20,000 units and 60% is shipped overseas. The analogue
handheld two-way radio still dominates the supply in China though makers feel that it is
also nearing its maturity stage and will gradually be replaced with digital radios. Many
companies are already focusing on digital trunking system which has more extensive
applications with brighter growth prospect.
An example of a leading maker in China, which has evolved into an active digital
trunking system solution and terminal provider, is HYT Science and Technology Co. Ltd
(HYT). HYT started R&D on digital trunked two-way radios since 2002 and has over the
years developed APCO and TETRA products. In 2006, the company produced one million
handheld two-way radios. Out of this, 60% of HYT output was exported to more than
70 countries worldwide such as Russia, United States, Japan, India and Indonesia. Most
of the companies in China also export their products to the Euro-American market with
the United States as the lead importer.
Case Study of a Technology Standard: TETRA
The evidence in the growth of trunked radio can also be seen through the development
status of the standards in the trunked radio systems. This is especially shown from the
worldwide growth in the implementation of standards over the networks in both the
public and private sectors. The data below shows the cumulative growth of global
TETRA contract over the years. As of third quarter 2008, TETRA reported having
secured 2,232 contracts globally and the standards are now used in 102 countries
worldwide, of which 63 are outside of Europe. According to TETRA, the fastest growing
markets regionally are the Asia-Pacific and South America, whereas according to
sectors, the fastest growing markets for TETRA are those in the Oil and Gas, and
Commerce and Industry.

15

First-responder terminals are used by public safety personnel as part of their communication system. These terminals
use the trunked radio technology with standards such as TETRA and APCO25.
16
First Responder Terminal Market to Reach USD3.5 billion by 2013, ABI Research, 5 November 2008.

21

TETRA Contracts Cumulative Growth

* until Q3
Source: Introduction to TETRA, TETRA Association, 2009

As of 2009, the largest market for TETRA is Central Europe at 35%, followed by AsiaPacific at 24%. Asia-Pacific TETRA market has doubled in the last 12 months. With an
increase of 98%17 in awarded contracts, the region is the fastest-growing critical
communications market in the world18. While public safety remains the largest global
user base at 47%, in Asia-Pacific the Transportation sector is extremely strong with
almost 40% of the market19. Globally, non-public safety sectors are also showing
potential such as the Oil and Gas industry, and general commerce and industry.
TETRA Contracts by Region in 2009

Source:
TETRA
Association, 2009

Market

Worldwide,

TETRA

TETRA Contracts by Sector 2009

Source:
TETRA
Association, 2009

Market

Worldwide,

TETRA

Case Study of a Manufacturer: Motorola Inc.

Motorola Inc., a provider in development and deployment of TETRA communications
solutions, announced at the end of March 2009, the shipments of its one millionth
TETRA terminal. The customer receiving these terminals is the Jordan Armed Forces
(JAF). TETRA has also recently won contracts to build digital trunked radio
communications network (TETRA) for Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad International
Airports to serve their round-the-clock mission-critical communications needs20. Such
growth and developments show that the global market for trunked radio services is still
growing as there are still demands from end users for various operations.

17
18
19
20

Figures refer to notified contracts June 2007 May 2008, compared to figures from previous 12 months.
TETRA markets doubles in Asia Pacific, TETRA Association Press Release, 26 May 2008.
TETRA markets doubles in Asia Pacific, TETRA Association Press Release, 26 May 2008.
Motorola shipped one million TETRA terminals

22

Case Study of a Government Radio Network: Government Radio Network

Services, Department of Commerce, New South Wales Government, Australia
In New South Wales, Australia, the Government Radio Network Services (GRN) is one of
the larger trunked radio networks in the world. Established in 1993, it brings the latest
radio communications technology to the New South Wales (NSW) Government Agencies
and Departments and provides a common platform for over 40 government agencies
and authorities who use mobile radio communications. Established in 1993, the GRN
covers the three most densely populated areas of NSW - Greater Metropolitan Sydney,
Newcastle and Wollongong. Over the last 15 years, the GRN has expanded significantly.
New sites are being added all the time, as well as offering enhanced (fill-in) coverage to
enable portable activities21. Currently, the NSW GRN covers over one-third of the state
of NSW. This equates to a geographic area of some 150,000 square kilometers, making
the NSW GRN one of the largest trunked radio networks in the world.
The Network extends to the regions as follows:
Region
North Coast:
New England:
North West:
West:
South West:
South:

Area
Forster/Tuncurry
Murrurundi, along the Castlereagh Highway
Mitchell and Barrier Highways to Lightning Ridge and Bourke
Cobar, Lake Cargellico and along the Newell to West Wyalong
Along the Hume and Federal Highways to and including Yass and the ACT
Nowra

Source: GRN Network and Growth, New South Wales Government Website, 12 October 2007,
http://www.grn.nsw.gov.au/about-the-nsw-grn/network-development-and-growth

Source: GRN Network and Growth, New South Wales Government

DOMESTIC TRUNKED RADIO MARKET: OVERVIEW AND GROWTH IN MALAYSIA

In Malaysia, according to Mindbranch22, the growth of trunked radio services appeared
to have reached a stable stage. This is mostly due to the rapid growth coverage of
cellular services where indirect competition for this service has taken away most of the
substitutable trunked radio market share. Like others, the market for trunked radio
services in Malaysia covers a wide range of users in the specialised user groups.
Key Players in Malaysia
There are basically two groups of key market players in the Malaysian market, which
are the Government and the commercial sectors. Both sectors have their own
subscriber segments serving different needs.
21

GRN Network and Growth, New South Wales Government Website, 12 October 2007,
http://www.grn.nsw.gov.au/about-the-nsw- grn/network-development-and-growth
Mindbranch is a leading source for market research covering over 130 sectors with in-depth industry research, global
businesses information and independent equity analysis.
22

23

Government Sector
The Malaysian Government has set up an integrated nationwide digital radio network
solely for the use of Government agencies known as the Government Integrated Radio
Network (GIRN). This network operates on the frequency band 380MHz to 400MHz for
the Public Safety Radiocommunications Services and the Military, Ministry of Defence.
The agencies involved are the Royal Malaysian Customs, Malaysian Maritime
Enforcement Agency, Royal Malaysian Police, Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department,
Immigration Department and Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs. Though
the users of GIRN network share infrastructure, they remain autonomous. The leading
technology provider in Malaysia for the integrated secured radio communications is the
Sapura Group.
For example, the Royal Malaysian Customs are using the Sepura23 Handheld Terminals
provided by Sapura24. The equipment is able to conduct communications or calls
through a talk group using a Direct Mode Operation (DMO) or Trunked Mode Operation
(TMO). The equipment is provided to all the Royal Malaysian Customs officers in the
Preventive, Narcotics, Marine and Internal Tax Division. Also, all their vehicles and
department boats are equipped with mobile trunked radio equipment.
Commercial Sector
In the commercial sector, there are four main consortiums that operate the trunked
radio services in Malaysia. These consortiums consist of a few smaller companies to
form a group to manage and roll out the digital trunked radio services in the country.
The consortiums are listed in the table below:
Trunked Radio Consortiums in Malaysia
Consortium
Companies
Electcoms Wireless Sdn Bhd
Electcoms Bhd
CMRS Trunk Radio Sdn Bhd
Syarikat Pelatus Sdn Bhd
Saturn Holdings Sdn Bhd
Push-To-Talk Sdn Bhd
DTRS Consortium
Mal-Tel Communication Sdn Bhd
STR Communication Sdn Bhd
Widenet Distributor Sdn Bhd
Asiaspace Dotcom Sdn Bhd
Hasyon Technologies Sdn Bhd
Hasyon Teknik Sdn Bhd,
Cometron Sdn Bhd
Pager Communications Sdn Bhd
Samen Trunk Radio Sdn Bhd
Textphon Sdn Bhd
Segi Maju Consortium
Segi Maju Sdn Bhd
Stars Associated Sdn Bhd
Source: Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, SKMM

However, Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) also offers trunked radio services, namely VHF
Nationwide and UHF Klang Valley.
At present, majority of the consortiums is operating on 100% analogue trunked radio
aside from Electcoms Wireless which is the sole digital trunked radio operator in the
country. Although there are signs that migration to digital trunked radio in Malaysia is
underway, the transition in upgrading to a digital infrastructure and system is still at a
slow pace due to the high cost involved. For example, Electcoms Wireless has 90% of
subscribers on analogue trunked radio and 10% subscribers on digital trunked radio
from the total of about 30,000 subscribers. Despite the emergence and availability of
23

Sepura is a leading network-independent TETRA radio supplier based in Cambridge UK. It also designs and develops
digital radios for the Emergency Services, the Military and the commercial sector
Pegawai Pencegah dan Cukai Dalaman Didedahkan Tatacara Penggunaan Handheld Terminal from Kastam Diraja
Malaysia Perlis website, 6 September 2008
24

24

digital technology, according to Electcoms Wireless, the migration of their subscribers

from analogue to digital is less than 5% as the existing analogue customers are
unwilling to migrate to digital trunked radio due to the high price of user equipment.
Another trunked radio operator, SLW Group has invested more than RM5 million to
bring the open standard TETRA digital trunked radio system to Malaysia. Segi Maju
Consortium (Segi Maju), a member of the SLW Group of Companies, recently conducted
a soft launch of its digital trunked radio services known as DART in May 2009. Another
RM15 million is expected to be invested over the next five years to upgrade the current
digital trunked radio service infrastructure25. After a year of its introduction, Segi Maju
expects 20% of its customers will migrate to digital trunked radio services26.
Market Growth
Compared to common communications services, the subscriber base for trunked radio
services in Malaysia is considered low. Among the large scale users in the market
served in Malaysia are from the emergency medical and transport services sectors,
security companies, freight and logistic companies, taxi service providers, including
mining and petrochemical companies. Today, there are approximately 50,000 trunked
radio subscribers nationwide27 with Electcoms Wireless having the largest number of
subscribers at 30,000. However, over the last five years, there appears no growth in
the number of trunked radio subscribers. This is also evident in the number of base
stations over the last four years since 2005 to 2008. Over the years, the numbers for
the 800MHz trunked radio base stations owned by the commercial service providers
have not grown with the figure remaining at 190. For the 380/400MHz trunked radio
base stations, the number stands at 454 as of 30 June 2009. Majority of the trunked
radio base stations in the 380/400MHz is owned by the National Security Council.
Others include the oil and gas, and transportation industry that require specific private
networks.
Fundamentally, there are three groups of trunked radio service providers in the
Malaysian market. These service providers are:
Groups of Trunked Radio Service Providers in Malaysia
Types of
Frequency
Purpose/Description
Number of
Number of
Group
Band
Service
Base
Providers*
Stations*
Service provider is Sapura Group,
servicing
the
Government
enforcement bodies such as the
Government
National
Security
Council,
Infrastructure
enforcement agencies, immigration
Radio
380 400 MHz
and customs departments with
1
430
Network
exclusive use of network and the
(GIRN)
need for integrated secured radio
communications for public safety
purposes.
Service
providers
consist
of
153
companies that provide radio
(including 28
Public Mobile 806 821 MHz communications for commercial
base stations
Radio
&
use such public radio taxi service,
12
for digital
Network
851 866 MHz tow trucks service providers, city
trunked radio)
council,
transport/logistics
operators
806 821
Service providers are organisations
Private
MHz/
or corporate entities that require
Network
851 866 MHz radio communications for their
19
37
25

Government to Continue to Push for Improvement for Telcos, Bernama, 21 May 2009.
Segi Maju sedia labur RM15 juta lagi, Utusan Online, 21 Mei 2009
SKMMs estimation(figures not including subscribers from the 380 400 MHz Government Integrated Radio Network,
GIRN)

26
27

25

&
380 400MHz

internal
use
only
with
no
connectivity to the public such as
airports operators, petrochemical
companies, seaports and mining
companies

28

* Note: Figures as of 2008

Source: Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, SKMM

Tariff/Pricing
In Malaysia, tariffs are not regulated and service providers are free to set the price to
be as attractive and competitive as they like. Findings show that most of the service
providers in the country are charging a monthly flat tariff for the use of trunked radio
services for unlimited airtime. The average monthly network access tariff per unit for
both the portable and mobile radio is between RM20 RM40 per month. Fees charged
are also dependent on payment period, quantity, packages subscribed and areas of
coverage. For example, the table below shows a sample of tariff charged by, Telekom
Malaysia (TM) over a private network:
Examples of Trunked Radio Service Tariff by, TM Over a Private Network
Charges/Unit/Monthly
1. Charges for Voice or Data:
1.1 1 Region
RM40
2 Regions
RM55
3 Regions
RM65
4 Regions
RM70
*Regions Consist of Central, Northern, Southern &
Eastern
1.2 Sabah or Sarawak
RM40
Sabah & Sarawak
RM55
2.
Reconnection Charges
RM10/per unit
Reconnection after Temporary Disconnection Due to
Unpaid Bill
3
Stamp Duty for New Registration
RM10/application
Source:
TMs
website,
radio/trunked-radio-services/

http://www.tm.com.my/business/corporate-government/satellite-maritime-

Access Package Models/Service Business Models

Service providers in Malaysia also provide different access packages. Findings have
shown that the following are the three generic types of access package models provided
by the service providers in the country:
Types of
Access Package Models
Network access only
Network
access
+
rental/lease
of
equipment
Use
of
spectrum
through authorisation

Generic Access Package Models in Malaysia

Remarks
Equipment is customers own
Cost of rental/lease varies from RM90 to RM300 depending on
radio-equipment/accessories/rental-period/quantity and packages
Provide total solution inclusive of spectrum packaged with initial
System Integration and on-going System Servicing, Maintenance,
Repair and Upgrade if necessary. Charges based on total
package/services required.

Source: Industry

26

There are also other access package models known as service business models provided
by a service provider28:
Types of Service Business Models in Malaysia
Service Business
Remarks
Models
Shared
Service Provides shared airtime or repeater services inclusive of system
Solutions (Talk group maintenance
rental)
Outsourcing Solution
Provides service solution inclusive of maintenance and investment of
all hardware and software
System Choice
Designs, supplies, installs to commission of communications systems
as specified by customer
MVNO Solution
Provides MVNO services. Customers may re-configure and partition
services according to their requirement
Source: Segi Maju Consortium

Equipment Cost
While there are many types of mobile and portable radios as well as console equipment
that are available in the market, findings have shown that the service providers in
Malaysia are more inclined to using equipment and systems from manufacturers such
as Motorola, Kenwood, EF Johnson, Zetron and AirTech.
The cost of trunked radio handsets or walkie-talkies available in the country also varies.
In general, the cost of digital trunking handsets is much higher than analogue as shown
in the table below. On average, a digital trunking handset is currently priced between
RM2,500 and RM3,500. The cost is more than double the cost for analogue trunking
handset. The current high cost of handsets is one of the impediments to market
penetration.
Given this, Kenwood, has indicated recently that the cost of digital radio hardware is
still 30% to 40% more expensive than analogue and they, as manufacturers, have
invested much in software development. From Kenwoods opinion, the hardware cost
will only decline depending on market trend and as the market size for trunked radio is
not as large as cellular mobile or wireless, Kenwood does not expect the digital trunked
radio hardware cost will decline much like the cellular.
Additionally, handsets operating on digital standard, TETRA, are currently priced higher
at RM2,800 to RM3,500 as compared to others like iDEN and GoTA.
Cost of Trunked Radio Handset in Malaysia: Analogue Versus Digital
Analogue
System
Conventional
Trunking
Digital trunking
Walkie-talkie
RM80-900
RM1300-1600
RM2500-3500
Intrinsically Safe walkie-talkie29* RM700-1600
RM2500-3000
RM5000-9000
Mobile radio
RM700-1400
RM2200-2700
RM3000-5000
*more than 50% of market is oil and gas sector
Source: Various industries

28

Operator here is referred to Segi Maju Consortium

Intrinsically safe walkie talkies are often used in heavy industrial environment where the radio may be used around
flammable vapours. This means that the knobs and switches in the radios are engineered to avoid producing sparks as
they are operated.

29

27

Cost of Trunked Radio Handset Based on Standards in Malaysia

Digital Standard
Handset Cost
TETRA
RM2800 3500
iDEN
RM455 1225
GoTA
RM455 1225
NXDN
Not available
Source: Various industries

With a relatively small subscriber base in the market, the service providers in the
industry are striving to obtain reasonable revenue. New investments are also limited
due to the high cost of infrastructure in radio trunking. For service providers, the digital
trunked radio terminal is currently priced at RM6,000 whereas the analogue terminal is
priced RM1,300. In the long run however, equipment and maintenance price for
analogue equipment will increase whereas digital equipment price will decrease
eventually.
Estimated Infrastructure Cost for Digital Trunked Radio
As the number of subscriber base and base stations required by each service provider
varies, we have not attempted to estimate the cost for deploying the entire digital
trunked radio system network and infrastructure.
However, to set up a digital trial radio infrastructure with one base site, the rough
estimation for the infrastructure cost is RM200,000. Note that this does not include the
provision for cabling and other services provided by the vendor. Normally, the cost of
installation is expected to be about 15% of the cost of equipment30. Thus, the best
estimates for a trial digital trunked radio with one base site including provision for
installation is approximately RM230,000.
Digital deployment is at an early stage in Malaysia, with SKMM strongly encouraging the
migration to digital. With the advent of digital trunked radio system, Malaysia now has a
complementary set of public system technologies, from single-frequency repeaters to
digital trunking, such as TETRA, APCO25 and GoTa CDMA. Though popular technologies
are emerging, TETRA seems to be the most preferred technology standard among
service providers here to support their system as it has been used extensively around
the world. Currently, SKMM adopts a technology-neutral environment. This creates a
flexible environment where demand and market forces will determine the technology of
choice.
SKMM also expects the service providers to migrate towards digital solutions,
particularly in the congested areas in order to increase efficiency and capacity. The
older technologies can be re-deployed to provide niche market service and service in
the sub-urban or less dense areas that might not otherwise receive adequate TRS
coverage.
The Issue of Unauthorised Cloning of Trunked Radio
Though the subscription tariff for trunked radio in Malaysia is relatively inexpensive in
comparison with other common communications systems, unauthorised cloning of
analogue trunked radio is an issue in Malaysia. For example, a dealer offering trunked
radio sets can charge cheaper fees as compared to other authorised dealers. Recently,
SKMM together with the Federal Commercial Crime Investigation Department and
SIRIM was able to trace a trunked radio cloning syndicate that was responsible for a
licensed trunked radio company losing some RM2.4 million yearly. However, with the
migration to digital trunked radio in the future, the issue of unauthorised cloning will
decrease with better security features in digital systems. At the moment, service
providers are working to improve the security of analogue trunked radio systems to

30

East Bay Radiocommunications Systems Design Evaluation Report

28

curb cloning. Also, SKMM will continue to monitor and work to arrest unauthorised
cloning activities in the country.
ECONOMICS AND FINANCIAL ANALYSIS FOR TRUNKED RADIO MARKET IN
MALAYSIA
Although the move towards digital trunked radio started over a decade ago, the trend
has yet to take off rapidly as compared to other communications devices. As mentioned
earlier, the percentage of migration to digital for trunked radio worldwide is expected as
in the industry forecast below:
Year
2009
2012

Analogue
70%
34%

Digital
30%
66%

Source: VDC Research Group

Therefore, it is necessary to understand what are the forces behind the demand and
supply for trunked radio in the market. In order to gain a clearer picture of the trunked
radio market in Malaysia, we have reviewed the economics concerned and examined
the state of financial performances of this segment.
Life Expectancy of Trunked Radio Network
According to TETRA, a typical trunked radio network is expected to have a life cycle of
around 15 to 20 years before replacement. This is also the current industry average.
Usually, a radio system infrastructure has a mix component of technologies that are
integrated together. Most of these components have technology life cycles of the IT
industry. Thus, parts or components availability is a limiting factor over time especially
for systems with mix technology as they become increasingly difficult to sustain as they
age.
At present, some current analogue trunked radio equipment is no longer being
manufactured or shipped while some are being phased out over the coming years.
However, it is found that the life cycles of these systems are being stretched for at least
another six to ten years from the end-of-life date or serviceable life of the
infrastructure31. The life cycle of equipment is determined by the suppliers and
manufacturers who provide extended support. The strategy employed by manufacturers
is to enter into a special contractual agreement to support products or equipment past
its commercial life. Manufacturers of trunked radio equipment will make bulk purchases
of parts and components when suppliers of the components used in trunked radio
manufacturing are phasing them out so that sufficient inventories can appear to be
maintained for the next seven to ten years. For example, if the end-of-life of a
component is announced to be in 2008, the equipment would likely be maintainable and
supportable until at most 2015. This strategy is currently being used with, for example
the Motorola MTX838 and MTX900 series of portable radios where they are no longer
manufactured, but, accessories and replacement parts are still available.
Thus, the life cycle of the analogue trunking equipment and components will be the
primary factor driving the need to migrate to digital system. Though this strategy
employed by the manufacturers seemed relevant, service providers should not count on
this for long-term sustainability of their systems equipment that they are offering to
end-users. They must ensure that there are careful planning and appropriate business
models established to cater and support the intended life cycles and technology
replacement process.
Now given that some of the current system infrastructure owned by service providers in
Malaysia were originally installed as far back as in 1994, the overall system life cycle of
31

Benton County Emergency Service Radio System Upgrade Review, 9 January 2007

29

the current infrastructure would be 15 years old (1994 2009) today. With the reality
that the manufacturers are able to support and extend the life of the analogue system
for at most another seven years, it will bring to the actual total end-of-life date for the
system to 2016. However, service providers must also be aware that even with recent
acquisitions of spare parts, it is unlikely that the system can be maintained to provide
much reliable service past the 20 years. Trying to sustain the serviceable life beyond
the 20 years is a risky proposition in respect of critical services supported.
Example of Life Cycle Timeline for Analogue Trunked Radio System and Infrastructure
Expected end-of-life

date

1994

Actual end-of-life
date

2009
Expected life cycle of 15 years

Source: SKMM

2016
Maintainable & supportable
parts & components by
manufacturer for a
period of 7 years

Examples:
Calculation on the Actual Estimated End-of-life Cycle for Analogue Trunked Radio
Systems of Service Providers in Malaysia
Companies
Established
System
Estimated
Support
Actual
Life Cycle
End-ofPeriod
End-Of(Years)
Life*
(years)
Life **
SLW
CORPORATION
SDN BHD
ELECTCOMS SDN
BHD
SEGI MAJU
CONSORTIUM SDN
BHD
STR
COMMUNICATIONS
SDN BHD
WIDENET
DISTRIBUTOR SDN
BHD
MAL TEL
COMMUNICATIONS
SDN BHD

1987

15

2002

7 years

2009

1989

15

2004

2011

1993

15

2008

2015

1994

15

2009

2016

1995

15

2010

2017

1997

15

2012

2019

Footnote:
*Calculated by adding 15 years of system life cycle to year in which the network was established.
**Calculated by adding 15 years of system life cycle and 7 years of support period to year in which the
network was established.
Source: Industry, SKMM

From the sample estimation above, we can concur that the actual end-of-life of
analogue trunked radio systems and infrastructure of service providers in Malaysia is
likely between the periods of 2010 and 2019. Therefore, pursuing an upgrade to digital,
on average before 2015 is a reasonable time period for Malaysia. We can also conclude
that failure to migrate before this time would result in a system that is not maintainable
or be expensive to maintain and unable to adequately support critical services. This
approach is also aligned to the industry norm where current market conditions are

30

moving away from analogue technologies to digital. As reported by VDC Research, in all
major markets such as North America, European Union and Oceania, all interviewees
reported a shift to digital technology. Suppliers reported in the study that the majority
of new equipment sold is digital. End users data also indicates the same result.
However, the decision to migrate latest by 2015 must also take into account other
factors such as the financial capabilities of the trunked radio service providers.
Return on Investment (ROI) for Analogue Trunked Radio Service Providers
An Example of Return on Investment (ROI) and Subscribers Growth for Analogue
Trunked Radio Service Providers in Malaysia

Sour
ce: SKMM

31

Legends to ROI graphs

Number of subscribers

Investment cost
Return

**

Technology reaches the point of

maturity after 8 years

Initial investment


Install new base stations

Buying new systems

Purchase of stocks, handsets, terminals and other

equipment

Purchase of software

Licence fees, etc

Losing number of subscribers as some have migrated to using

digital trunked radio

Market reaches the point of

maturity (No growth and
number of subscribers remains)

Negative ROI (Investment cost

> Return)

Return decreases as number of subscribers decreases and

cost of analogue trunked increases

Positive ROI (Investment cost <

Return)

Cost of investment gradually increases

Cost of maintenance for analogue trunked radio gets

more expensive

Analogue trunked radio equipment becoming more

expensive as supply decreases and analogue
equipment phases out

Source: SKMM

The graph illustrates a hypothetical example of a return on investment (ROI) for an

analogue trunked radio service provider over a period of time and the subscribers
growth trend. At the beginning, the initial investment cost of the service provider is
substantially high as large amount of capital is required in setting up the infrastructure,
installing new systems, acquiring new stocks (e.g. handsets and terminals), purchasing
software and paying for licensing fee. The cost of investment is represented by the
green line which is rather steep at the beginning of the graph but tapers off slightly
subsequently as investment cost decreases when most of the implementation or roll-out
cost is disbursed; leaving a recurring maintenance cost as represented by the flat
portion of this line. After a period of time, as heavier replacement costs are necessary,
the line curves up again. The return for the service provider is depicted by the red line
here. Initially, the return obtained will be minimal and is not able to compensate for the
high initial cost of investment. This is illustrated by the return line located lower than
the investment cost line whereby the overall ROI of the service provider is negative at
this early phase. However, the service provider will attain a point of breakeven and the
return line will intersect with the investment cost line. This also denotes the starting
point of a positive ROI where the service provider will be attaining a higher return than
the cost of investment afterwards.
Aligning to this, in terms of subscribers growth, the number of subscribers shows an
increasing trend at the initial stage and the few years after as early adopters filled up
the market and there is still demand for analogue trunked radio technology to fulfil the
needs of end-users in the market. The size of the subscribers in the market continues to
grow till it reaches a maturity stage where there is no growth and the number of
subscribers remains the same as in what the trunked radio Malaysian market is facing
at the moment with a stagnant subscribers size of 50,000.
However, if a trunked radio service provider whose analogue system has an actual endof-life by 2015, does not migrate to digital by then, they will risk the following:
Shrinking subscribers market as the analogue trunked radio subscriber will
eventually migrate over to digital that provides wider applications, better security
and clearer voice quality.

32

As the serviceable life of the analogue trunked radio systems comes to an end, the
analogue system maintenance and operating costs will increase as replacement
parts and support for the systems are harder to find.

In many cases, this will lead to a decreasing ROI and eventually followed by a negative
ROI where the return line is unable to sustain above the cost line.
Technology Maturity Model
The current trunked radio market offers two types of systems the analogue trunked
radio and the digital trunked radio. Looking at the present market situation, the market
size for the analogue trunked radio is larger than the digital trunked radio market. At
present, the analogue trunked radio market has already reached a maturity including
the analogue technology. In this phase, looking on the demand side, the system has
already satisfied the basic needs of the end-users. When this happens, end-users now
seek efficiency, reliability, low cost and convenience or ease of use. These are the
existing offerings of the analogue trunked radio system. Once the level of performance
has met the requirements of the average end users, improvements in technology have
lost its value for end users thus, they tend not to buy new technologies. This is
illustrated in the analogue and digital technology maturity model graph below.
Technology Maturity Model (TM Model)

Source: Adapted from Growing Up: Moving Technology-Centered to Human-Centered Products and SKMM

On the supply side, as marketplace matures, other pressures start to build up. In this
phase, there are now either multiple competitors or high competitive pressures within
the industry itself and each is able to satisfy the customers technical requirements. The
analogue trunked radio products and equipment can no longer be differentiated by
features and each and every competitor within the industry has comparable technology
with equivalent performance, so other dimensions of the analogue trunked radio
products now take on added relevance such as reliability. The service providers of
analogue trunked radio are no longer technology-driven companies they are
considered as a service-driven company. For example, all analogue trunked radios
provide the basic voice applications, one-to-one and one-to-many talk features. Now,
the importance of ease of use, reliability and convenience takes centre stage.

33

Eventually, with multiple competitors within the industry and cost-sensitive buyers in
the market, profit margins of the service providers drop due to decreasing prices and
shrinking market share a current reflection of the situation faced by analogue trunked
radio service providers in Malaysia.
In this situation, the analogue trunked radio service providers need to step back and
make a careful assessment of the market situation and trends. If service providers want
to grow, they must change the way things are done and change their product offerings.
Growth here will only be fuelled by technology enhancements and service providers
must transform themselves back into a technology-driven company where products are
marketed on the basis of their features, technological claims and superiority to capture
the early adopters32 who want better technology advantages and better performance.
Given time and the right marketing strategy, users will demand better technology and
more features, regardless of cost or inconvenience. Here is where the digital trunked
radio is currently positioned in Malaysia, at the point of the curve where technology
dominates, offering many new or added advantages in use and applications. At this
position, early users are relatively few as in the case of digital trunked radio systems
market in Malaysia. Over the years, the number of users will grow until it reaches a
maturity just like the analogue trunked radio systems.
Company Financials
Source of Financial Accounts
The financial analysis in this report is based on individual accounts of the trunked radio
service providers available to SKMM. The financial status of eight trunked radio service
providers out of the 17 between the years 2003 and 2008 could be analysed in time
series. This is as a result of incomplete accounts or no submissions of accounts and
data that is available for comparisons.
Size of Market by Revenue
The overall market for trunked radio in Malaysia is indicated to be about RM68 million
by revenue, with retained earnings available for future investments by this segment to
be between RM20 and RM25 million33. Over the past four to five years, the overall
trunked radio industry in Malaysia has not grown.
Size of Companies
In Malaysia the trunked radio industry in Malaysia comprise a mixed group of
companies that range from big organisations with share capitals ranging between RM30
million and RM1 million to some smaller firms with share capitals between RM50,000
and RM200,000.
Financial Performance
Based on the financials, the larger analogue trunked radio service providers are seen
able to sustain a positive financial standing over the years with their revenues and net
profits increasing and remaining stable. There are also smaller analogue trunked radio
service providers who continue to experience financial difficulties with significant decline
in revenues and net income or experiencing serious net losses over the years.
Noteworthy, the service providers that are currently or recently providing the digital
trunked radio services are also undergoing operating and net losses. This is noted as a
temporary setback to eventual better ROI.
In terms of operating margin, the impact of margin varies for each service provider. For
service providers with stable operations and a larger subscriber base, they maintain a

32

Early adopters are people who buy new products because they love the technology and are willing to take risks on the
products and pay high costs to obtain them.
33
Estimation derived from the accumulated profits or retained earnings of as available data from the service providers
based on the financial accounts with SKMM. This will indicate how much money the industry has for future investments
and developments to digital.

34

higher operating margin whereas the smaller service providers show negative operating
margin. Nevertheless, the overall operating margins across the industry have
contracted and are expected to contract even further, due to continuous decrease in
revenue and operating income if they remain in the analogue segment which is already
experiencing limited growth.
The service providers within the industry in Malaysia are in fact reporting decreasing
profit margins where some are experiencing negative profit margin. Moreover, there are
also service providers, especially many smaller players who post losses. The pressure
on margins and loss positions are the result of heavy competition within the market
itself as service providers are lowering prices of the analogue trunked radio services due
to market pressures and maturity. However, a larger service provider like Electcoms
Berhad did post profit margin ranging from 10% to 67% over financial year ending 31
January for years 2004 to 2007 respectively. In contrast, service providers like Segi
Maju Sdn Bhd and Electcoms Wireless Sdn Bhd post fluctuating negative and positive
margins likely due to investments in digital infrastructures.
Summary and Observations
Overall, the financials of these service providers offer an overview of how the trunked
radio industry is performing in Malaysia. Based on the earnings as well as the operating
and profit margins, we can infer that the trunked radio market and industry are not as
financially sound as we would like them to be, with only three to four companies seen
as being able to sustain their business on stronger financial performance. These are the
service providers that will be able to outdistance the others in terms of earnings in a
longer run and are most likely able to migrate to digital trunked radio systems in the
immediate future.
It appears now that perhaps the greatest challenge for all trunked radio service
providers in Malaysia at the moment is maintaining favourable revenue and long term
survival. In solidifying the future of the market and the industry and upon examining
the financial performances of the trunked radio service providers, consolidation among
trunked service providers can be at their advantage. Such an approach is technically
and financially feasible. In our opinion, it will offer significant improvements for
operational efficiency and increase the availability of resources as well as capital to
expand the industry. This is not only to reinforce the profitability of the better
performance larger companies, but also to offer the smaller trunked radio service
providers a chance to continue to be in the market and a profitable status at that.

35

Conclusion Based on Both the Economics and Financial Trend Analysis

When analysing both the economic, financial and cost perspectives of the trunked radio
service providers collectively, we can further conclude the following for the trunked
radio service providers in Malaysia:
1. The business life cycles of the analogue trunked radio service providers
have been shortened
Theoretically, it can generally be deduced that it takes 21 years to reach the actual
end-of-life for trunked radio systems infrastructure and before its ROI begins to
decline. However, the observation from the analysis on the financial performances of
these analogue trunked radio service providers in Malaysia indicates otherwise.
Although the infrastructure that they own may still have a few more years of
serviceable life, most analogue trunked radio service providers in Malaysia are
already experiencing a loss with either a declining or a negative ROI over the last
few years. Hence, under these two circumstances, the business life cycles of the
analogue trunked radio service providers have in fact reduced to less than the 21
years as indicated from the few companies that only have profit margins at all.
In the Malaysian market, there are two scenarios. The market for scenario 1 refers
to service providers who are still able to sustain their operation with positive
revenues and profits and the market for scenario 2 reveals that there are some
service providers who are already unable to sustain their operations as revenues are
decreasing with losses incurred over the last few years. These scenarios are depicted
by the graphs below, which is an adaptation to the earlier graph that shows that it
takes about 21 years before an analogue trunked radio service provider sees a
decline in ROI.

36

Scenario 1
Scenario 1 depicts the current situation faced by some of the larger analogue
trunked radio service providers in Malaysia. Observation of their financial
performances shows that these service providers have sound financial background
that will enable them to sustain their operations in the next few years but risk facing
further decline in profits and revenues soon. Service providers such as these are
most likely to be able to migrate to digital trunk radio system when required.
Granting this, these service providers should give serious consideration to upgrade
and migrate to digital now. If an upgrade is delayed any further, the potential for its
financial resource capability to upgrade to digital will likely cease.
Scenario 1: Actual Business Life Cycle of Larger Analogue Trunked Radio Service
Providers in Malaysia

Source: SKMM

37

Legend for Graph in Scenario 1

Number of subscribers

Positive ROI (Return > Investment cost)

Initial investment

Install new base stations

Investment cost
Return
*

**

Technology reaches the point of

maturity after 8 years.
Market reaches the point of
maturity (No growth and number
of subscribers remain)

Buying new systems

Purchase of stocks, handsets, terminals and other
equipments

Purchase of software

License fees and the like

Negative ROI ( Investment cost

> Return)

Losing number of subscribers as some have migrated to

using digital trunked radio

Source: SKMM

38

Scenario 2
The graph in scenario 2 shows the situation of some of the smaller analogue trunked
service providers who are facing financial difficulties. The business life cycle of these
service providers have been reduced even further as they are already incurring
serious losses in the past few years and can barely sustain their operations. From
their financial performances, revenues are showing a decline, and their operating
and profit margins have contracted to a loss. Hence, it will be challenging for these
analogue service providers to migrate to digital now and in the future as they barely
have the resources and financial capital to do so.
Scenario 2: Actual Business Life Cycle of Smaller Analogue Trunked Radio Service
Providers in Malaysia

Source: SKMM

39

Legend for Graph in Scenario 2

Number of subscribers

Positive ROI (Return > Investment cost)

Initial investment

Install new base stations

Investment cost
Return
Technology reaches the point of
maturity after 8 years.

*
**

Market reaches the point of

maturity (No growth and number
of subscribers remain)

Buying new systems

Purchase of stocks, handsets, terminals and other
equipments

Purchase of software

License fees and the like

Negative ROI ( Investment cost

> Return)

Losing number of subscribers as some have migrated to

using digital trunked radio

Source: SKMM

2. Analogue trunked radio service providers need to invest in digital trunked

radio to rejuvenate their business.
As mentioned previously in the technology maturity model, growth will only be
fuelled by technology enhancements and service providers must transform
themselves back into a technology driven company to reap the advantages of
technology. Thus, to rejuvenate their business life cycle and grow, analogue trunked
radio service providers need to invest in digital. By investing in digital, they are able
to improve revenues, and sustain and expand their operations as digital trunked
radio systems are able to offer more applications to a wider subscriber market as
compared to analogue. This in turn will increase ARPU and decrease customer churn
for the service providers.
The graph below illustrates this. Although at the beginning, trunked radio service
providers may endure a period of losses as they ramp up their operations, they will
be able to sustain or rejuvenate their business again with improved revenues as
compared to the basis of continuing their analogue trunked radio operations only.

40

Trunked Radio Business Life Cycle: Rejuvenation through Digital

Source: SKMM

41

Legend for Graph on Trunked Radio Business Life Cycle

*
**

Number of analogue subscribers

Number of digital subscribers

Investment cost for analogue trunked

radio

Investment cost for digital trunked

radio

Return for analogue trunked radio

Return for digital trunked radio

Technology reaches the point of maturity

after 8 years.

Positive ROI (Return > Investment cost)

Initial investment

Install new base stations

Market reaches the point of maturity (No

growth and number of subscribers
remains)
Negative ROI (Investment cost > Return)

Buying new systems

Purchase of stocks, handsets, terminals and
other equipment

Purchase of software

Licence fees and the like
Source: SKMM

3. Consolidation is an obvious choice especially for smaller analogue trunked

radio service providers for sustainability
With deteriorating revenues and increasing losses, migration to digital trunked radio
system is far from possible especially for the smaller service providers. Today, those
who have been able to migrate have sound financial background. Even then, the
initial investment costs have taken a toll on their preliminary financial status, as is
expected when investing in digital technology. As such, in order to sustain their
businesses and ensure that there are enough resources and capital, consolidation
would be a viable option for business viability.
BUSINESS MIGRATION MODELS FOR TRUNKED RADIO SERVICE PROVIDERS
Financial capability is indeed the central element to be focused at for every company
that wants to pursue the migration towards digitalisation. Shifting from its analogue
legacy system to digital means they need to spend huge capital investment for the
deployment of this new system. Some companies face no major hindrance in their
migration process to digital due to their solid financials records.
However, for some other companies, they may need to work on a new different
business migration model in order to make the migration plan successful for their
companies. Different companies need different business model. Suitability evaluation
based on financial aspects and business plan are key points to facilitate the process of
building up a new business model.
Here, we have put together three possible business migration models that may be
suitable and feasible for trunked radio service providers in Malaysia to embark on a
migration based on the current state of the industry and present financial strength of
each company.
Business Migration Model 1: Companies Consolidate Into a Consortium
In this business migration model, analogue trunked radio service providers consolidate
to form a consortium which will represent the best interest for all companies involved.
This consolidation will help companies to combine their economic capacity in order to
prolong their business and uphold their operations. As a result of this consolidation, the
newly-formed consortium will eventually have enough financial resources to carry out
the most crucial part, which is the investment for the new digitalised infrastructure,

42

where initially that investment cost seemed to be too much to be borne by one
analogue trunked radio service provider.
This model is suitable for companies that do not want or have the capabilities to entirely
transform as a digital trunked radio service provider on an immediate basis and as a
single entity due to many reasons, including weak financial status.
In terms of subscriber base, the number of subscribers will come from each of the
companies where it will then be shared and slowly migrated to be placed under the new
consortium. This is another advantage of consolidation, where not only financial capital
is now shared as joint inputs, but companies involved can also take advantage if
subscribers migration is combined and planned strategically.
This business migration model can be illustrated in the diagram below, Company A,
Company B and Company C which originally operate as different analogue trunked radio
service providers, consolidate and pool money and resources to be Consortium ABC,
where it will then operate as a new consortium, providing fully digital trunked radio
service in the allocated spectrum band and required licence.
Consolidation of Companies to be a Consortium

Analogue
Trunked
Radio
Service
Provider
Companies

New consortium Digital Trunked

Radio Service
Provider

Company A + Company B + Company C  consolidate = Consortium ABC

Source: SKMM

Business Migration Model 2: Wholly-owned Subsidiary

This model is a contrast to the first model whereby the company does not combine with
other companies to be a new consortium but instead form a subsidiary, wholly owned
by the parent company, but operate differently at the same time.
The parent company, which is an analogue trunked radio service provider, constructs its
subsidiary to operate as a digital trunked radio service provider. Both will operate in
parallel with different types of service orientation (one is analogue and the other is
digital) but are meant to support each other at any time when it is needed. Operating
upgraded and legacy systems in parallel is a common transition strategy for systems of
this type.
The initial investment outlay also comes from the parent company with most of the
initial cost for operation will be pumped in by the parent company. The parent company
will gradually discontinue its analogue trunked radio services and operate together with
its subsidiary as a digital trunked radio service provider later on.

43

This model is an ideal option for a company with steady financial performances and has
immense excess in revenue and retained earnings over a long period of time. Although,
the number of subscribers would not be a combination of subscribers base of many
different companies as in the previous model, the parent company will migrate its
analogue subscribers to their new subsidiary which operates for digital trunked radio
services in phases.
Diagram below shows Company M as the parent company forming a new subsidiary,
Company MM to operate as a digital trunked radio service provider in parallel to its
analogue trunked radio services.
Wholly-owned Subsidiary
Parent Company
Analogue Trunked
Radio Service
Provider

Subsidiary Digital
Trunked Radio
Service Provider

Company M Bhd (parent company) forms a subsidiary to operate on digital

trunked radio system = Company MM Sdn Bhd
Source: SKMM

Business Migration Model 3: MVNO Model

This model is based on Mobile Virtual Networking Operator (MVNO) which exists in the
mobile cellular industry and has been practised by many large and small companies
globally. In the mobile cellular industry, MVNOs need not build up their own
infrastructures, but instead, they rent the network from Mobile Network Operator
(MNO), which usually is the major and key mobile operator in the country that owns the
complete infrastructure needed for full deployment of cellular network communications.
MVNOs are able to save money from renting the network from MNOs since they are not
spending any cost in building base stations or any other expensive core infrastructure.
Based on this model, it is feasible for analogue trunked radio service provider which
does not have financial capability to build such costly infrastructure, to rent the capacity
from an established digital trunked radio service provider. This model, however, will be
feasible, if only there is an established company which wants to rent out their capacity
to the smaller company.
This report does not explain in detail the costing of renting out the capacity, but
through industry observation both companies are capable to make good working
returns using this model, giving that both are doing business on an agreed wholesale
rate of charges which is based on bilateral agreement. Depending on their needs, they
can operate as thin or thick MVNOs34.

34
Perspective on MVNO is based from the cellular mobile market and Guideline on Regulatory Framework for 3G Mobile
Virtual Network Operators, February 2005. MVNO is an organisation that does not have assignment of 3G spectrum but
is capable of providing public cellular services to end users by accessing radio networks of one or more 3G spectrum
holders.

44

This model also provides opportunity for smaller companies to follow suit the transition
trend without jeopardising their business life-cycles. They can also take some time to
draw enough financial resources as well as operational exposure before going for full
deployment of digital system.
Diagram below shows how the MVNO model takes place.
MVNO Model for Trunked Radio Service Providers

Company B
Smaller Digital Trunked Radio
Service Provider (acting as
MVNO)

Company A
Digital Trunked Radio
Service Provider
(acting as MNO)

Rent Out
Network

Company C
Smaller Digital Trunked Radio
Service Provider (acting as
MVNO)

Company D
Smaller Digital Trunked Radio
Service Provider (acting as
MVNO)

Source: SKMM

45

MIGRATION PLAN IN MALAYSIA: FROM ANALOGUE TO DIGITAL TRUNKED

RADIO PLATFORM
Globally, the market for trunked radio systems operating on 800MHz bands
for some time. However, as a result of the last World Radio Communication
(WRC) decision in 2007 which included the 800MHz band in the IMT band,
being carried out to consider the migration of the trunked radio services in
other bands in the near future.

has existed
Conference
studies are
Malaysia to

The 800MHz Trunked Radio Services in Malaysia

In many countries such as US, UK, Australia, and New Zealand, the frequency band,
800MHz has been allocated for the general or commercial market for trunked radio
systems as summarised in the diagram below:
Summary of 800MHz Private Trunked Mobile Radio Bands in Malaysia, Singapore, US, UK,
Australia and New Zealand
NZ

AUS

813

820

819

825

858

MHz

864

865

UK

870

MHz

Paired with 916 - 921

US

806

824

851

869

MHz

SG

806

823

851

868

MHz

MY

806

821

851

866

MHz

871

MHz

876

= Trunked Radio
Allocation

Source: Adapted from Digital Trunked Land Mobile in the 800MHz Band: An Engineering Discussion Paper,
Radio Spectrum Policy and Planning Group, Energy and Communications Branch, Ministry of Economic
Development, May 2007

The diagram shows that US, Australia and New Zealand have significantly harmonised
spectrum arrangements in the 800MHz band. This also includes Singapore and
Malaysia.
Currently, all trunked radio system services operating in Malaysia are using frequency
bands between 806MHz to 821MHz and 851MHz to 866MHz with a total bandwidth of 2
x 15MHz. This frequency band is divided into three blocks which are Block A, Block B
and Block C. The frequency bands for operation of trunked radio systems were first
introduced in Malaysia in 1990 and have been used for the same purpose so far. In
2006, SKMM approved an inband migration plan from analogue to digital with a target
completion by December 2008. However, this target could not be achieved and is
currently under review.

46

The frequency allocations for trunked radio system for Public Network and Private
Network are shown below:
Frequency Band 806MHz to 821MHz and 851MHz to 866MHz
Transmit Frequency (MHz)
Receive Frequency (MHz)
BLOCK

From

To

To

From

851

856

806

811

856

861

811

816

861

866

816

821

Source: SKMM

Based on a study on the market and technology trends of the digital trunked radio
systems in the 800MHz bands, SKMM finds that there is no lack of equipment
availability for digital trunked systems using 800MHz band in the Malaysian market
today. There are many choices of equipment that can support digital system and use
digital technology standards.
Nevertheless, it is well understood that presently, digital trunked radio systems cost
much higher than the analogue systems mostly on the user terminal side. Prices may
vary from one technology to another depending on the technology or standards used.
It is also recognised that the analogue market is now mature while the digital market is
inevitably replacing the existing analogue system. When this happens, within the next
three to five years, digital systems will be considered mature with price levels finally
becoming comparable to the analogue systems.
Migration Status and Future Plan: 400MHz Frequency Band
As at second quarter of 2009, there has been some migration of analogue to digital by
service providers although others have yet to migrate. Some of the service providers
like Electcoms Wireless have already begun the migration to digital and currently have
42 sites operating on digital systems. Segi Maju Consortium on the other hand, has
obtained their digital system in early 2009 and will be deploying their phase one by
third quarter 2009, covering three sites in the Klang Valley. Electcoms Wireless is
operating using GoTa system from ZTE while Segi Maju Consortium is using TETRA
system. The other consortiums have yet to make any significant move to migrate to
digital.
At present, SKMM is studying the proposal to move the 800MHz trunked radio systems
to the frequency band of 410MHz to 430MHz. This proposal is driven by the decision
from the WRC. The WRC 2000 and 2007 have identified for the 800/900MHz band (790
to 960MHz) to be allocated for IMT future mobile service. The digital dividend band (790
to 862MHz) is likely to be re-farmed by 2012 in Europe and 2015 in Asia Pacific. As
such, SKMM is also planning to prepare this 800/900MHz band to be used for future
mobile services (IMT), which might need a re-farming on the spectrum in order to allow
IMT to be introduced.
If the plan is approved, the proposed move will make the 400MHz band, which is the
380 to 400MHz and 410 to 430MHz, the primary band for radio trunking. The
propagation characteristics of the band is ideal for large area coverage with a small
number of base stations, giving rise to lower infrastructure cost as compared to the
800MHz band. Some service providers have already shown keen interest to perform
trial for their digital trunking system to operate in 410 to 430MHz frequency band.

47

LICENSING REGIME FOR TRUNKED RADIO SERVICE PROVIDERS IN MALAYSIA

In Malaysia, the trunked radio service providers are regulated by the Malaysian
Communications and Multimedia Commission (SKMM). Under the Communications and
Multimedia Act 1998 licensing regime, as the trunked radio services in Malaysia are
serving a niche market, the service providers were previously classified under the class
licence category where it requires less or minimal regulation.
However, as service providers are now required to migrate from analogue to digital in
the near future, SKMM now requires the consortiums to apply for the individual licence
category. With much wider new applications, the digital trunked radio technology will be
able to serve a potentially larger market base as compared to analogue trunked radio.
Currently, three Consortiums in Malaysia have been placed under the individual licence
category as they have or in the process of rolling out digital trunked radio service soon.
These Consortiums are Electcoms Wireless Sdn Bhd, Segi Maju Consortium and DTRS
Consortium.
THE WAY FORWARD FOR TRUNKED RADIO: WHAT WILL THE FUTURE BRING?
In order to meet the challenges of the future, users and service providers must act now
to ensure that future systems and technologies are capable of providing the required
critical services.
Going Digital
No doubt that at the end of the day, the shift towards digital is eminent in most parts of
the world including Malaysia. Hence, in the quest to take advantage of the many
benefits of digital services upon migration, trunked radio vendors and even service
providers have to ensure that their technical blueprint and commercial roadmap are
ready for the change. These should include the following as suggested by VDC:

Suggestions by VDC for Digital Migration

Availability of multimode (analogue and digital) radios to enable a more seamless
transition and support backward compatibility with legacy analogue systems

Competitive pricing with existing analogue solutions with premium not to exceed 20 30%

Development of form factors that better support wireless data applications, especially
improved user interfaces and intuitiveness

Improved leverage of the security capabilities of digital technologies

Source: Venture Development Corp.

48

In fact, according to Analysys Mason, when end users and service providers fail to
embrace change, there are different effects for both as illustrated below:

Effects When Fail to Embrace Change

Operators
End Users
Loss of customers as they migrate to other For managed services, the end user may
networks that can offer advanced features,
be put in a weak negotiating position,
such as high-speed data, potentially
where the operator can hold them to
resulting in costly sunk investment
ransom knowing that any migration will be
difficult
Increasing risk of obsolescence as the
network matures up to the point where If the network is not meeting new business
current equipment is no longer supported
requirements, additional expensive shortand retrospective work is required to
term solution is necessary
implement alternative solutions possibly
leading to disruption to end users and As a network comes towards end of
additional costs
contract/network life, the operator is likely
to be less focused if it anticipates that the
end user will migrate

Source: Analysys Mason

According to VDC, the following are developments that will drive the trunked radio
market towards digital:
New Applications That Will Drive Market towards Digital
New Developments
Details
Wireless data
Wireless data applications may represent the key missing
applications
ingredients. Wireless data opportunities are expected to be a
critical factor driving next-generation PMR adoption, especially
among emerging user segments.
Broader sets of
Users are not looking for improved performance in terms of
applications
solutions, but they are looking to support a broader set of
applications.
Digital standards
The emergence of several accepted global digital standards and
critical factors accelerating the transition.
Voice
Voice will remain the killer applications especially among traditional
users such as public safety. Enhancement of voice capabilities and
quality are significant investment drivers themselves.
Complex applications
While standard and data application such as messaging are fairly
common, requirements for more complex applications that improve
worker productivity and field-based communications at the point of
interactions are emerging.
GPS and LBS
Core users are increasingly leveraging on GPS and LBS such as
automatic vehicle location
Video support
Support of video for remote monitoring and surveillance represents
critical growth segments.
Source: Venture Development Corporation, RadioResource International. 2009

Consolidation of Service Providers

Service providers should also look into consolidation to build a strong platform to
compete. Although the industry has not grown much in size, but a strong consolidation
in the market will help increase shared resources that will lead to market growth and
enable scalability. Through consolidation, service providers can earn economies of scale
to enable them to even compete with similar offerings in the market and fund the
increased technology investment needed due to market growth and increased client and
product sophistication. At the moment, the trunked radio services industry in Malaysia
is currently made up of a small number of relatively large players. However, in the
coming years, there is an indication that the industry and its players will face
crossroads. As the analogue trunked radio market reaches maturity, service providers
need to identify future growth opportunities which can be done more effectively through

49

consolidation. Following this, a post-market consolidation will see service providers

focusing on developments of new products and service offerings.
Overall there are many good reasons for consolidation:
There is a slowdown in market growth as seen in the analogue trunked radio market
globally.
New entrants into the trunked radio industry in the future will create price pressures
for incumbents, especially when the price levels for digital trunked radio equipment
fall.
Leveraging on economies of scale to improve operational efficiencies in terms of
infrastructure, integration, standardisation and customer base.
Continuous regulatory evolution in the communications industry and technology
standardisation will enable service providers to integrate their solutions easily.
Such strategy of consolidation is employed by service providers and dealers in the US
for operational efficiency35.
Cross Collaboration and Strategic Partnerships with Manufacturers and
Developers
With the spread of cellular wireless trying to capture the wireless business market share
and creating a more competitive environment, trunked radio service providers in
general are losing out in the communications industry. Under these circumstances, to
survive the competition, service providers in Malaysia not only need to consolidate as a
viable option but also need to go into cross collaboration or strategic partnerships with
manufacturers and developers. Such strategic move to work together as one to develop
and support applications can drive the development of better solutions to customers in
terms of nationwide network on seamless system, with better quality of service.
Faced with the changing industry trends, innovativeness and new applications for
trunked radios will soon drive the market forward in the future towards digital. So is the
requirement for a sustainable business ecosystem. Operators who can adapt or adopt
changes to their strategy can build sustainable business models outside of traditional
service areas. This is no longer the time to work in silos as it is not sustainable in view
of the intense competition existing in the communications markets today. Strategic
partnerships also enable customisation of products according to the needs of a wider
range of end-users, which opens new market opportunities within the industry. This
cannot be done if service providers work only on their own.
Sustainable Business Models for Trunked Radio
Industry Ecosystem

Technology
Partners

Solution
Partners

Service
Providers

Infrastructure
Suppliers

System
Integrators

A sustainable business model

for the trunked radio industry in
Malaysia encompasses players
working together in a strategic
partnership as shown in the
diagram
below.
A
suitable
ecosystem enabling discussion
and forum to solve problems and
develop solutions will stimulate
the growth of new innovative
applications leading to new radio
trunking products, solutions and
services.

Source: Adapted from various websites.

35
An example of US dealers banding together for operational efficiency can be found in the article, Dealers Form Digital SMR
Consortium, 27 May 2008, http://www.radioresourcemag.com/onlyonline.cfm?OnlyOnlineID=97

50

Case Study on Convergence in a Taxi - The Integration of Innovativeness and

New Applications: Taxi Fleet Management
An example of collaboration for innovativeness and new applications in radio trunking is
the taxi fleet management system. Currently, the taxi fleet management systems in
Malaysia consist of simple two-way voice radio communications using radio trunking as
shown in the diagram below. Sophisticated fleet management system as in Europe is
not in place at the moment in Malaysia.
Taxi Fleet Management in Malaysia
Central taxi despatch
operator

Operator
receives
response from
Taxi B

Receives
announcement
from operator

Customer calls
requesting a
taxi service

Operator calls
back customer
with details of
taxi order

Taxi B

Operator
takes taxi
order from
customer

Transmits positive
response to operator using
mobile trunked radio

Operator
announces
call through
trunked
radio

Base station
for trunked
radio
communication

Receives
announcement
from operator

Taxi A

Customer
Source: Adapted from various websites.

Relying solely on radio trunking communications through a central despatch centre,

efficiency in taxi fleet management is not optimised. The use of trunked radio system
can be extended not only to communications but there are other new application areas
that can be explored as well.
IndelcoStar, a company in Europe, uses innovation to integrate new applications into
the trunked radio systems of taxis in Europe. The company has developed a dynamic
taxi dispatch and management system for use in cities throughout Europe. The system
developed by IndelcoStar is available in two modes mixed and trunking. The trunking
mode is used in crowded cities with many vehicles (taxis) located in a small area. In
certain areas, there will be at least two base stations, one for data and one for voice.
According to IndelcoStar, all taxis are connected over the data channels to the host. For
voice connection, the selected taxi will be switched to the voice channel with all other
taxis remaining on the data channels. At the end of the voice transmission, a control
message switches the taxi back to the data channel. The host is responsible for the
traffic on each channel. The layout of the system (number of base stations) is
calculated from the expected load of the busiest hour of the year. Note that when one
base station fails, the system will still work.

51

Furthermore, IndelcoStar has integrated additional applications into their radio

communications systems as shown in the diagram below:
Examples of Integrated Applications in Trunked Radio Communications
Emergency button
Data terminal

Receipt &
invoice
printer

Conventional system - taxi

with only a voice trunked
radio system

Taxi with integrated applications

in its trunked radio system

Online terminal for

card payments

GPS

Source: Adapted from various websites

The system integrates various innovative applications into the trunked radio system
that requires the development of new hardware and software applications as well as
collaboration across various manufacturers. In terms of hardware (equipment) and
software, IndelcoStar collaborates with the following types of manufacturers and
developers:
IndelcoStar Strategic Collaboration with Hardware Manufacturers and Software
Developers for Integrated Trunked Radio System
Types of Hardware
Types of Interconnect Software Developers
Manufactures/Makers
Data terminal
Auto booking software to book taxi in fully automatic way
without any human intervention
GPS receiver (antenna)
GPS software to monitor the location of the vehicles of its fleet
Mobile trunked radio set
Computer Telephony Integration or CTI software intelligent
interconnection between the telephone workplace and the work
station of the dispatcher. Dispatcher is provided with all the
relevant information about the caller
Chipcard/smartcard/
Clearance of credit and cliental cards software enables
magnetic card/credit card customers to pay by a payment card right in the tax and provides
reader
complete billing and administration of credit cards
Intelligent interface box that Internet software to book a taxi through web pages in fully
connects various equipment
automatic way
Emergency button
Invoicing software enables invoice to be created directly for
customers
Online server
Online optimising routes software provides quick and exact
meter of the price of routes
Source: fms Datenfunk Ltd. And Optimising taxi fleet management by Gunter Holpfer, Kapsch Fleet
Management Austria

When a customer calls and orders a taxi service, this is received by the taxi despatch
centre (TDC) and recorded by the operator at the workstation. Information on the
address, alternative routes for getting there or the page in the road map are
automatically taken. As soon as the address is logged, the nearest taxi with the
shortest time of arrival is contacted by the computer. Once the driver accepts the order
(all done within an acceptable time limit of, for example, 10 seconds), the computer will
show the details of car number, current taxi status and driving time to the destination

52

in minutes to the telephone operator. This information is then passed on to the

customers. For the driver, after accepting the trip, all relevant order information is sent
to the taxi. Information is stored in the onboard computer until the order is completed
by the driver. This information can be accessed at any time.
If the driver does not accept the order, the computer will immediately search for and
contact the next nearest taxi. The TDC does not need to undertake additional work, as
all this is done automatically through the computer system, which means that more
calls can be received by the operator.
Upon servicing the customer, the driver logs in the time of pick-up and drop-off on the
computer and this is recorded at the TDC. A customer can also immediately obtain the
estimated waiting time of pick up through a synthesised voice message. All this is done
through integration of applications with the trunked radio system by an intelligent
interface box that controls the triggering of the interface. The system architecture is
shown below:
Convergence in a Taxi: Integrated Taxi Fleet Management System
GPS-locating
GPS-locating

2-wire telephone line

DBS
Database station

Data terminal interface

DTI
Network
AMA

Server
Vehicle equipment

Radio

Interface for:
- Taximeter
- GPS-Receiver
- Microphone
- Loudspeaker
- Emergency button
- Antenna
- Chipcard reader

PC-Workstation

PC-Workstation

Taxi central despatch

Source: Optimising taxi fleet management by Gunter Holpfer, Kapsch Fleet Management Austria

Examples of other applications that can also be integrated into the same system are
security cameras, turn-by-turn navigation monitoring and fuel analysis. Integration of
other applications into trunked radio systems can also be done for other operations.

53

CONCLUSION SUMMARY OF KEY FINDINGS

In conclusion, key findings from this study have shown that:
1.

There is a need for digital deployment for trunked radio as global trends have
shown a shift in demand from analogue system to digital trunked radio. Migrating
to digital can also enable service providers to rejuvenate their business life
cycles.

2.

There is a need to consider migration of the trunked radio operations in Malaysia

to the 380/400MHz due to the decision made by the WRC to use the 800/900MHz
band for IMT future mobile service in the near future.

3.

Although the number of subscriber base is small and has not increased
extensively, trunked radio service is an important communications system as it
supports the critical industry needs including the security and emergency services
that have significant economic and social impact. In the advent of going digital,
service providers will be able to offer wider applications and serve potentially
larger market. Hence, the earlier decision by SKMM to have service providers to
operate under the individual licence category is in the right direction.

4.

As digital trunked radio is able to offer wider applications, service providers can
take the advantage of this to increase revenue through the creation of new
services offered for a fee, thus increasing average revenue per user (ARPU).
Through newer applications and services offered, customer churn for trunked
radio services can also be reduced.

5.

There is a need for service providers to also consolidate for business survival in
the long term, let alone operational efficiency. Consolidation will help increase
the availability of resources as well as capital to stay in business.

6.

Therefore, there is a need for service providers to get into smart partnerships
and strategic cross collaboration with manufacturers and developers for a
sustainable business ecosystem today.

Overall, service providers, manufacturers and developers must continue to strive to be

competitive by taking advantage of improved technologies, developing new applications
through smart partnerships and technology transfers as well as implementing better
marketing strategies as trunked radio offers end-users features not available from other
wireless services. They must also continuously observe the international scenes,
developments and industry demand for an indication on where the industry is moving
towards and work to adopt or adapt accordingly for sustained viable business models.
However, creating public awareness about the benefits of these services remains one of
the biggest challenges for service providers. Hence, regulators such as SKMM will also
continue to work with service providers to improve the local regulatory environment so
that trunked radio service providers can sustain and provide the much needed services
to their clients.

54

ACRONYMS
3G

THIRD GENERATION

LTR

LOGIC TRUNKED RADIO

ANSI

AMERICAN NATIONAL
STANDARDS INSTITUTE
ADAPTIVE MULTIPLE RATE

MCAS

MHz

AVL
CAI

ASSOCIATION OF PUBLIC-SAFETY
COMMUNICATION OFFICIALS
AUTOMATIC VEHICLE LOCATION
COMMON AIR INTERFACE

MULTIPLE CHANNEL ACCESS

SYSTEM
MIXED EXCITATION LINER
PREDICTIVE, ENHANCED
MEGA HERTZ

CC

CONTROL CHANNEL

NATO

CUG

CLOSED USER GROUP

NCS

CDMA

CODE DIVISION MULTIPLE

ACCESS
DELIVERED AUDIO QUALITY
DIRECT MODE OPERATION

PABX

DIGITAL MODE RADIO

DIGITAL QUADRATURE PHASESHIFT KEYING
ENHANCED DIGITAL ACCESS
COMMUNICATION SYSTEM
EUROPEAN
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
STANDARDS INSTITUTE
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION
FREQUENCY DIVISION MULTIPLE
ACCESS
GOVERNMENT INTEGRATED
RADIO NETWORK
GLOBAL OPEN TRUNKING
ARCHITECTURE
GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM
GLOBAL SYSTEM FOR MOBILE
GOVERNMENT RADIO NETWORK

PTT
QAM

HSD
iDEN

HIGH SPEED DATA

INTEGRATED DIGITAL ENHANCED
NETWORK

IMT

AMR
APCO

MELPe

SMR

MULTIMEDIA MESSAGING SERVICE

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF
STATE TELECOMMUNICATIONS
DIRECTORS
NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY
ORGANISATIONS
NATIONAL COMMUNICATION
SYSTEM
PRIVATE AUTOMATIC BRANCH
EXCHANGE
PUBLIC/PRIVATE MOBILE RADIO
PUBLIC MOBILE RADIO TRUNKING
SERVICE
PUSH-TO-TALK
QUADRATURE AMPLITUDE
MODULATION
SUPERVISORY CONTROL AND
DATA ACQUISITION
SPECIALISED MOBILE RADIO

STANAGS

STANDARDIZATION AGREEMENTS

SWOT
TDMA

STRENGTH, WEAKNESS,
OPPORTUNITIES AND THREATS
TIME DIVISION MULTIPLE ACCESS

TEDS

TETRA ENHANCED DATA SERVICE

TETRA
TDC
TIA
TMO
TRS

TERRESTRIAL TRUNKED RADIIO

TAXI DESPATCH CENTRE
TELECOMMUNICATIONS INDUSTRY
ASSOCIATIONS
TRUNKED MODE OPERATION
TRUNKED RADIO SERVICE

TSC

TRUNKING SYSTEM CONTROLLER

UHF

ULTRA HIGH FREQUENCY

JAF
KBit/s

INTERNATIONAL MOBILE
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
INTERNATIONAL
TELECOMMUNICATIONS UNION
JORDAN ARMED FORCES
KILO BIT PER SECOND

VHF
W

VERY HIGH FREQUENCY

WATT

KHz

KILO HERTZ

WRC

WORLD RADIOCOMMUNICATION
CONFERENCE

LMR

LAND MOBILE RADIO

DAQ
DMO
DMR
DQPSK
EDACS
ETSI

FCC
FDMA
GIRN
GoTa
GPS
GSM
GRN

ITU

MMS
NASTD

PMR
PMRTS

SCADA

55

CONTACT US
HEAD OFFICE
MALAYSIAN COMMUNICATIONS AND MULTIMEDIA COMMISSION
63000 Cyberjaya
Selangor
Telephone: +60 3 86 88 80 00
Facsimile: +60 3 86 88 10 00
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.skmm.gov.my
Aduan SKMM: 1-800-888-030
Aduan SKMM SMS: 15888
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Fax: +60 3 55 18 77 10

ENQUIRIES
For any details and enquiries please contact the Market Research team:
Yee Sye Chung (Head)
Fiona Lim Ai Suan
Sharmila Manoharan
Azrita Abdul Kadir
Nadzrah Mazuriah Mohamed
Siti Nailah Kamarudin
Nurul Izza Saaman
Ramziyah Mohamad
Nor Hayati Muhd Nor

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